In this photo provided by the Indian Space Research Organization, India’s maiden lunar
mission Chandrayaan-1, or Moon Craft in ancient Sanskrit, successfully takes off at the
Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota on Wednesday. India launched its ﬁrst mission to the moon Wednesday, rocketing a satellite up into the pale dawn sky in a two-year
Details on page 8
mission to redraw maps of the lunar surface. (AP Photo)

Media to Imchen: Apologize or face Blackout
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22 (MExN): Perhaps one of the most strained and pressurized of Media communities, the Nagaland
Media has not taken lightly to NPF-led
DAN’s Home Minister Imkong Imchen’s
ill-conceived remarks that the state’s Fourth
Estate is into what he called “yellow journalism”. Imchen is served 7-days ultimatum to
publicly apologize and justify to the Media;
failure to do so, the DPC “resolved not to
entertain any functions or press statements
related to the Home Minister.”
An irate Dimapur Press Club today made
clear to the Home minister that he should have
been responsible enough to own liability for

the string of violence and criminal activities
in Dimapur rather than go about educating
journalists on their responsibilities. “The
house felt that the HM should be responsible
enough to own responsibility for the spate of
criminal activities in Dimapur and put in all
his efforts into containing the same instead of
lecturing the media on their ‘responsibilities’”
the DCP reminded today in a statement.
An emergency meeting of the Dimapur
Press Club was held October 22 in the backdrop of Imchen’s remark against the state
Media. The journalists in out right censured
the context remarks made by Imchen.
Continued on page 3

WITH TUESDAY’s Imphal blast toll rising, and amidst condemnations pouring in
from various quarters, the proscribed Kangleipak Communist Party-Military Council (KCP-MC) has claimed responsibility
for the blast. Amidst reactions to the blast,
as inhuman and cowardice by various social organizations, the militant KCP-MC
has owned up to the act. The group claimed
that the security forces personnel after
‘having robbed money from the common
people throughout the day’, had gathered
at the place between Imphal West Police
Commando Complex and 32 Assam Rifles
Transit Camp ( the place where the blast
occurred) and ‘enjoyed Lagao gambling in
the name of Diwali celebrations’.
The KCP-MC in a statement issued
to the press this evening said that the outfit’s “special demo team” after observing
the development at the area for the last
three days, had triggered the bomb last
evening to “show displeasure” against the
security forces personnel ‘enjoying Lagao
gambling’. The KCP-MC further stated
that the security forces ‘enjoying the gambling’ have been doing so after intoxicating
themselves. In that state of mind the security personnel have been committing other
“immoral” activities, the outfit said.
Terming Diwali as a “foreign festival”
brought by mainland Indians, the KCP-MC
urged not to endorse the festival. The KCPMC also urged the people not to hobnob with
security forces personnel and surrendered
militants, to avoid a fate similar to those civilians killed on Tuesday. The outfit even went
so far to “condole” the victims’ families.
Meanwhile, the National Identity Protection Committee (NIPCO), All Manipur
United Clubs Organization (AMUCO),
All India Christian Council, Zeliangrong
Women Organization, Northeast Support
and Helpline and All India Confederation
of ST/SC Organization have condemned
Tuesday’s blast. In protest, people in the
Lamlong area under Imphal East district
called a bandh today by forcing shops to
close. Roads passing the area were blocked
and the protestors expressed resentment
against the attack.

Protestors burn tires to protest Tuesday’s bomb blast in Imphal, Wednesday, October 22. The death
toll from the bomb explosion outside a police training center in Imphal has risen to 17 after three more
wounded succumbed to injuries overnight, police said Wednesday. (AP Photo)

‘Further study on strengthening
laws to deal with terror’
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22 (PTI):
The Government would require further study on whether amendments
are needed to be brought in existing
laws to deal with terror strikes, Home
Minister Shivraj Patil told Rajya Sabha today. Replying to a supplementary
raised by Shobhana Bhartia (nominated) and Alka Balram Kshatriya (Cong)
during Question Hour, Patil said the
“issue has been discussed widely in the
media and political circles ... It requires
more study”. He said the Unlawful
Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 was
amended in 2004 to incorporate various provisions to deal effectively with
terrorism and terrorist acts.

India wants to seal border with Myanmar on page 5

Continued on page 3

‘Beef up anti-Terror system’
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): Nagaland chief
minister Neiphiu Rio has
censured the Tuesday bomb
blast in Manipur and said
anti-terror mechanisms
should be reinforced and
steps taken to evolve ways to
combat terrorism. The Tuesday bomb blast in Imphal left
more than a dozen dead and
many injured.
Rio said terror attacks in
the north east have increased
significantly and said this
should be a concern for all
the NE states and the government of India. “The security and anti-terror mechanisms must be beefed up
and steps must be taken to

evolve ways through which
we can make a collective effort to combat terrorism”
Rio said in a message today.
“We cannot allow the mongers of terrorism to hold the
people at ransom and continue t create fear and panic.
All possible measures must
be taken to fight the menace
of terrorism” he said.
The chief minister also
said taking the lives of innocent people and practice of
violence and bloodshed find
no place in any civilized society and the perpetrators of
terror and violence need to
be served the highest level of
punishment as per the laws
of the land.

USSC stew over teachers’ policy ‘Nagaland’s HIV/AIDS

Lipichem

Kiphire | October 22

THE ISSUE over the new
teachers’ recruitment policy today invited a sit-in
in the entire four districts
of the ENSF’s jurisdiction. In Kiphire the United
Sangtam Students’ Conference as per the directives of
ENSF staged the first phase
of their agitation at the office premises of the Deputy
Commissioner of Kiphire.
The new teachers’ recruitment policy was passed by
the state government in the
year 2003, but after a lapse
of few years the government
has decided to implement it
only this year.
Earlier, the ENSF had
served an ultimatum with
three points. They were, 10
years relaxation for ENSF,
setting up of a DIET/training institution in all the
district headquarters and
sub-divisions and intensive

Members of the USSC sit-in as a ﬁrst-phase agitation, in the premises of the ofﬁce of
Deputy Commissioner, Kiphire. (Morung Photos)

service in-training be given
to “unprofessional” teachers
who are in service instead of
VRS before the new teachers’ recruitment policy is
implemented. The dateline
expired on August 13. However, so far there seems to
be no response from the authorities, which ultimately
forced the organization to
go for agitation.
The ENSF had earlier
met the chief minister, minister of Education and the
director of Education over
this issue, where they assured fulfillment of the demands. But there appeared
no concrete solution, which
aggravated the ENSF going
into agitation in phases in its
entire jurisdiction. The second phase of agitation which
is scheduled tomorrow will
be picketing all the offices of
the DEO or DIS till the charter of demands is fulfilled. So
far, no untoward incidents
have been reported.

rate 1% decrease’
Newmai News Network
Kohima | October 22

THE PROJECT DIRECTOR of Nagaland State Aids
Control Society (NSACS)
disclosed that the prevalence
rate of HIV/AIDS in Nagaland has come down to less
than one per cent. Making a
power-point presentation on
the HIV/AIDS scenario in
the state and the programmes
under National AIDS Control Programme (NACP)-III
during the meeting of state
level committees of concern
on HIV/AIDS on Tuesday,
he said that the down-trend
is a great relief. Nagaland
is counted amongst the six
high HIV/AIDS prevalent
states in the country.
Meanwhile, official
sources revealed that the
meeting, presided by Nagaland Chief Secretary Lalhuma noted and appreciated

the various actions that various departments are taking
up to fight the menace. He
suggested several steps that
various government departments can take up as part
of their ongoing activities.
The members were also of
the view that it would be a
great step forward if some
percentage of the budget of
various departments can be
earmarked for HIV/AIDS
related activities, as a policy.
As the chairman of the
committee, the chief secretary also put several suggestions to be implemented by
the NSACS and other government departments. He
suggested that the district
administration and the police should be made more involved with the fight on HIV/
AIDS. ‘Involve as many people and agencies as you can’
Lalhuma suggested to the officials of NSACS. Reserving

certain percentage of sponsorship, subsidies and loans
for entrepreneurship, selfemployment and training
under various government
schemes for PLHAs, would
go a long way in capacitating HIV affected people, the
chief secretary said. All government departments should
formulate some action plan to
help in the fight against HIV/
AIDS, he added.

By buying this Newspaper, you are contributing to the process of positive Social Change and supporting the non-proﬁt activities of the Morung Foundation

School, Chandmari, here
this morning. Dedicating the
station in the presence of several dignitaries, public leaders and students, Abhishek
Singh, IAS, Secretary, Infor-

mation Technology & Technical Education, encouraged the
students to take advantage of
the provided facility, adding
that it would go a long way in
enabling the children to know
the basics of computers.
Singh also expressed his
happiness to the concerned
authorities for undertaking
such an innovative project
that seeks to create a new
paradigm in the learning
process by providing unrestricted computer access
in an open setting. Further,
he urged upon the SSA to
further expand the coverage of such facility in the
state. Presently, there are 15
HiWEL Learning Stations
across the state. K J Lohe,
State Project Director, State
Mission Authority, SSA Nagaland, in his speech said the
HiWEL Learning Stations
would be kept open for children before and after school
hours, where they can play
computer games and browse
for general knowledge.
Also touching on ‘global
village’, Lohe was hopeful
that an internet connection

would be initiated in due
course of time. He also stated
that the HiWEL Learning
Stations would be made accessible to schoolchildren
including out-of-school children, adding that the idea
behind the facility is to expose the basics of computers
to children. The programme
was chaired by Lhingneiphal,
while Vlmawya delivered the
welcome address. Proposing the vote of thanks, Santu
Thapa, member of Ward Education Committee, said that
the HiWEL Learning Station will help the students a
lot and extended invitation to
children from other schools
to come to the station.
HiWEL is a joint venture
between NIIT Ltd. and the
International Finance Corporation (a part of The World
Bank Group). Established in
2001, HiWEL was set up to research and propagate the idea
of Hole-in-the-Wall, a pathbreaking learning methodology created by Dr. Sugata Mitra, Chief Scientist of NIIT.
Formally called Minimally Invasive Education,

this innovative methodology
was first tested in a slum in Kalkaji, New Delhi, in 1999. The
experiment was replicated
in two other rural sites in the
same year. The first adopter
of the idea was the NCT of
Delhi. In 2000, the Government of Delhi set up 30 Learning Stations in a resettlement
colony. This project is ongoing
and continues to create a tremendous impact among generations of young learners, an
available source said.
With the formation of
HiWEL in 2001, a national
research program was started, in which Learning Stations were set up in 23 locations across rural India. In
2004, the Hole-in-the-Wall
reached Cambodia through
the Ministry of External Affairs, GoI. HiWEL is now
poised to scale up the idea
of Hole-in-the-Wall to make
a significant contribution to
improving elementary education and life skills of children across the world, especially those in disadvantaged
communities in rural areas
and urban slums.

‘Involve dist administration,
Police in HIV/AIDS ﬁght’

KOHIMA, OCTOBER 22
(DIPR): The State Level
Committee of concern on
HIV/AIDS held a meeting
under the chairmanship of
Chief Secretary Lalhuma,
at the Chief Secretary’s
conference hall Kohima on
October 21 to discuss, identify and recommend steps for
strengthening multi-sectoral
response to HIV/AIDS.
The committee noted
and appreciated the various
actions that various departments are taking up to fight
the menace of HIV/AIDS in
the state and suggested several steps that various government departments can take
up as part of their ongoing
activities. The members were
also of the view that it would
be a great step forward if some
percentage of the budget of
various departments could
be earmarked for HIV/AIDSrelated activities as a policy.
As chairman of the committee, the Chief Secretary also
put forward several suggestions to be implemented by the
NSACS and other government
departments. He suggested

Tsg RJD concerned
over road condition
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22
(MExN): The District Council of the Rashtriya Janata
Dal (RJD) party of Tuensang
held its meeting on October
17, 2008, in the attendance of
RJD State Council members,
Hayung and N Kaimang.
During the meeting, it was resolved that the council would
request the state government
to consider the Tuensang
people’s plea on the deplorable road condition between
Tuensang and Mokokchung
which was a state highway. “It
is only a 3 hour journey, but
at present vehicles take 7-8
hrs which is great setback to
time and economy of the district,” stated the press statement issued by president H

Changlemba Chang.
In this connection, the
council also lamented that
such extreme road conditions
also posed great danger to serious patients since there was no
sufficient medical facility or
doctors there. The party therefore requested the government
to “detail” some officer to examine the road since it was the
only lifeline of the district.
The said meeting also
resolved to ask the government to initiate the opening of another branch of the
State Bank of India in Tuensang town since all financial
transactions of the entire district was done in the lone SBI
branch. This, therefore, led
to permanent overcrowding

which was causing untold
hardship to the people, particularly the pensioners.
Furthermore, the party
condemned the persecution
of Christians in other states
ands expressed solidarity
with suffering Christians. It
also asked law enforcing agencies to take necessary steps for
peaceful co-existence of all
communities, being a secular
and democratic country.
Meanwhile, the release
informed that handing
and taking over of charge
between outgoing district
president, C Sashi, and the
newly appointed president,
H Changlemba Chang, took
place in the presence of the
other office bearers.

Ladies with their babies seen resting for a while at Wokha District. (UB Photos)

KMC urges wholesale dealers to stick to agreement

C
M
Y
K

that the district administration and Police should be made
more involved in the fight on
HIV/AIDS. “Involve as many
people and agencies as you
can,” Lalhuma suggested to
the officials of NSACS. Reserving certain percentage of sponsorship, subsidies and loans for
entrepreneurship,self-employment and training under various government schemes for
PLHAs would go a long way in
capacitating HIV affected people,theChiefSecretarypointed
out,addingthatallgovernment
departments should formulate
some action plan to help in the
fight against HIV/AIDS.
Earlier, the Project Director of NSACS gave a PowerPointpresentationonthe HIV/
AIDS scenario in the state and
the programmes under NACP
III. He disclosed that the prevalence rate of HIV/AIDS in the
state had come down recently
to less than 1%, which was
“a great relief.” The meeting
concluded with a note to meet
more often and to strengthen
the multi-sectoral response to
HIV/AIDS in a more concrete
and systematic manner.

DIMAPUR, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): Subsequent to
thorough discussions held,
the office of the Kohima
Municipal Council (KMC)
has notified all the wholesale dealers of perishable
items that the open tender
system has been introduced
with the sole intention of
controlling the exorbitant
rise of prices and business
monopoly of some vested
individuals in the city.

It stated that the agreement between the KMC and
wholesale dealers had been
signed with the dealers having read and pledged to abide
with all the 15 terms and
conditions laid down in the
agreement. Therefore, the
Chairperson, Vipolal Kintso, stated that the council is
to act on the terms and conditions therein and execute it
accordingly without any favour and discrimination.

The press statement
issued today also added
that under agreement-15,
it clearly stated that in the
event of failure to comply
with the clauses above by
the grantee, the grantor reserves every right to forfeit
the security deposit and cancel the permit/dealership
without prior information.
Therefore, the KMC issued
strong warning to the wholesale dealers to strictly abide

by the terms and conditions
signed, adding that failure
to do so would result in stern
action as per agreement-15.
The Municipal Council further asked the public
and business communities
for positive response to the
eviction carried out in the
KMC market and slaughterhouses committee along
with the market inspector
on footpath vendors on October 20, 2008.

RTO Kohima informs DMC warns on illegal
city bus operators
signboards, banners
KOHIMA, OCTOBER 22
(DIPR): Regional Transport
Officer, Kohima, Mezayi Tetseo has once again informed
the operators of Kohima
Town City Buses to produce
their vehicles at the Old
MLA Hostel for inspection
and issue of special sticker
on or before September 30,
2008. The inspections are
going on everyday except
Sundays and holidays from
7:00 am to 9:00 am in the
morning and from 3:00 pm
to 4:00 pm in the evening.
No city buses are be-

ing allowed to operate in
Kohima Town without the
Special Sticker from October 1, 2008. The defaulters
shall invite action under
the appropriate sections of
the Motor Vehicles Act 1988
such as heavy fine, seizure
of vehicle and detention,
etc. the notice warned. The
heads of college/school institutions that are utilising
the Kohima City buses for
their wards have been informed to engage only those
buses that bear the ‘special
sticker’.

DIMAPUR, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): The Dimapur
Municipal Council has informed that any signboard,
banner, kiosks, etc. displayed by any individual,
firm or company, without
prior permission from the
DMC, within its jurisdiction, is directly against the
norms and rules of the Act
as prescribed under section
161 of the Nagaland Municipal Act, 2001. All concerned
who have put up the same
without prior permission

of the council have been directed to remove them within seven days from the date
of issue of this order. DMC
Chairperson, K Khekaho
Assumi, in an order has
strictly prohibited putting
up of banners at the City
Tower, the footbridge near
Holy Cross Police Point, and
at the new flyover. On failing
to comply with this, the defaulter will be penalised and
necessary action initiated as
per the Nagaland Municipal
Act, 2001, warned the order.

IN A SIGNIFICANT development, Nagaland’s agricultural produce will now
be accessible to the national
and international market
through organic agriculture. For the first time in
Nagaland, the ‘organic certificate’ was awarded to the
Tuensang Organic Farmers
through the Department of
Agriculture, Government of
Nagaland, on February 18,
2008, by the globally recognised certification agency, the
SGS India Pvt. Ltd.
With this, it will particularly benefit 32 villages
in Shamatore and Chesore
circles in Tuensang district,
comprising of 3423 individual farmers, covering a
delineated area of 3002ha
of organic farming for the
following selected crops
such as kholar (local beans),
maize, ginger, large cardamom, passion fruit and chilli. “This is first of its kind in
Nagaland and largest area
ever brought under organic
farming in whole of north
east region in a compact
area as per SGS India Pvt.
Ltd with effect from 18th
February 2008,” stated Dr.
Supong Keitzar, Director of
Agriculture.

CORRIGENDUM
Referring to the news
item ‘Summary Revision of Electoral Rolls’
Deputy Commissioner Kohima, Sachopra
Vero, has stated that
the Special Campaign
dates mentioned in the
last paragraph should
be corrected as 16-112008 and 23-11-2008
and not as published
earlier. The error is regretted.
Issued by DPRO,
Kohima

Nagaland ex-servicemen tour Delhi

DIMAPUR, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): As part of ‘Op
Sadbhavana’, an excursion
of 15 ex-servicemen (ESM)
from Nagaland to Delhi and
Shimla was flagged of by Maj
Gen BK Chengappa, AVSM,
COS 3 Corps, today. These
ESM will visit and interact
with senior Army and civil
dignitaries at Delhi. Thereafter, they will proceed to
attend the Raising Day (November 1) of 1st NAGA at
Solan in Himachal Pradesh.
This visit offers an opportunity to these ESM to witness
a new vibrant India and opportunities available in an
atmosphere of peace and
tranquillity. Similar visits for
school boys from Nagaland
are also being undertaken to
motivate them for better careers in the mainstream.
One of the tour members is Hav. Sovehu (92) of
1st Assam Rifles who retired in 1948 due to injuries
sustained in a bomb blast
during World War II. He

fought battles at Jessami,
Kohima, Imphal, and in
Burma against Japanese.
He belongs to Phek village,
in Phek District, and is living with his wife, children
(12), grandchildren and
great grandchildren. The

enthusiasm of this war veteran is to be emulated by the
youth today.
The event has been organised by the 164 Inf Bn
TA (H&H) NAGA to honour the ex-servicemen of
Nagaland. The group select-

ed for excursion comprises
of ESM of Naga Regiment,
Assam Regt and Assam Rifles. Present on the occasion
were Lt Col Omveer Singh,
Offg CO, 164 TA, and other
senior officers of Rangapahar Military Station.

LOCAL

The Morung Express

Thursday

23 October 2008

Dimapur

NPF bites back on No-trust memo
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22
(MExN): The NPF today issued a response to the Congress’
memorandum to the Governor of
Nagaland demanding the resignation of the chief minister and the
NLA Speaker from their respective posts. “After having lost two
consecutive assembly elections,
they are desperately looking for
any sensational issues to keep
themselves in the news,” the NPF
stated in the response, appended
by NPF president Dr. Shurhozelie. It is ‘most unlikely that the
people would be fooled by such
cheap gimmicks’ the NPF said
The NPF flatly termed the
Congress’ demands as “farcical
and foolhardy, and also betray ignorance of the processes of law”.
The decision taken by the Speaker
inside the House and the course of
the proceedings is not subject to review by any other authority, including the Governor, the NPF said.
“However, if there is allegation of malafide (sic) in the decision taken by the Speaker, it may
be subjected to a judicial review
through a writ petition. In this particular instance, the 3 independent
MLAs and 9 NPF MLAs had actually filed a petition in the Supreme
Court against the decision of the
Speaker by engaging a famous
Advocate, Shri Abhishek Singhvi.

Lingmai Union greets
on Chenga Gadi
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): The Lingmai
Union Nagaland extends
greetings to all the Zeliangs
on the forthcoming Chenga
Gadi festival. A press release
issued by the general secretary, Takam Ngung, requested the people to honour the
holiday as declared by the
state government and hoped
that the coming festival will
bring peace and tranquility in
the days to come.

Shoxuvi village bans
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22
(MExN): The Shoxuvi Village Council has strictly prohibited any ‘style or system’
of fishing and hunting in and
around its jurisdiction with
immediate effect. A press
note issued by its chairman,
V Yepthomi, informed that
it would take action, as per
the council rules and regulations, against any parties or
individuals if found guilty.

However, the Supreme Court had
rejected their petition. In such
a background, how can they demand an apology from the honorable Speaker how for the decision
he had taken in good faith and in
accordance with the direction issued by him on this behalf under
the rules,” the NPF explained.
The NPF also said that the
direction on August 21 by the
Speaker was done in good faith,
with the sole intention of preventing unprincipled voting by unscrupulous members in the house,
and to uphold the true spirit of the
Anti-Defection Law. Secondly, the
NPF said Kiyanilie is not the first
Speaker who suspended the voting
rights of MLAs in the house. The
party cited P.R. Kyndiah, Speaker
of the Meghalaya Assembly who
suspended the voting rights of 5
members with effect from August
7, 1991, pending the final disposal
of the petition for their disqualification and another Speaker, EK
Mawlong also suspended the voting right of Mayalim War, MLA
of Meghalaya. “Even the Supreme
Court, in SLP (Civil) 11742 of
1991 had passed interim orders,
restraining certain Members of the
Gujarat Assembly from exercising
their vote in the House pending
the hearing and final disposal of
the case against them,” the NPF

stated.
On the Speaker’s decision not
to count the votes of those NPF
MLAs who had defied the party
whip, the decision was made in
accordance with the direction
duly made and notified on August 21, 2006 by the Speaker under the provisions of Rule 19 of
Members of the Nagaland Legislative Assembly (Disqualification on Ground of Defection)
Rules, 2003. “This direction was
known by all the members of the
Nagaland Assembly from before,
but no one had protested against,
or challenged the said direction
made by the Speaker which stated
that ‘votes cast by any member belonging to a political party in contravention of the Party whip shall
not be counted’. Knowing fully
well the existence of the directive
and for fear of being disqualified
they had submitted their resignations from the 10th House of the
Nagaland Legislative Assembly,”
the NPF said.
The party also informed that
the NPF defectors were absent
in the morning and rushed at the
time of voting in the Assembly. So
the Speaker acted in accordance
with the direction he had made
under the rules, when he decided
not to count the votes of the NPF
members who had voted against

the party whip. On the issue of
whether the direction made by the
Speaker is fully in consonance with
the principles of the Constitution
and other relevant laws of the land,
the NPF ‘agreed’ that there can be
conflicting legal issues. “However,
since no one had challenged the
said direction of the Speaker in
a court of law, and no court had
struck down the said direction
as ultra vires of the Constitution,
the Speaker was within his rights
to give his rulings in accordance
with that direction. Therefore, the
Speaker had done no wrong to the
9 NPF MLAs and 3 independent
MLAs of the 10th Nagaland Legislative Assembly, and the question
of apologizing to them or stepping
down from the Office does not arise
at all,” the party said. In regard to
the decision of the High Court of
Guwahati on the petition filed by
Yitachu on the issue of imposition of President’s Rule, the NPF
felt that the imposition of PR in
Nagaland was ill-motivated, and
against the spirit of the Constitution. “However, since the people of
Nagaland have given their verdict
in our favor, we do not consider it
necessary to file an appeal against
the High Court’s decision, because
we take the people’s verdict as the
final and all important verdict,”
the party added.

DIS Dimapur Hetoli Sumi (4th from left) and Jevika SIS
along with VEC members and Head GB of Hotovi Village at
the inauguration of GPS L.Hotovi.

DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22
(MExN): The DIS Dimapur,
Hetoli Sumi, on October 21 inaugurated the GPS of L. Hotovi Village. Speaking as chief
guest, she exhorted the villagers by explaining the meaning
and significance of communitisation and the very essence
of communitisation.
She encouraged the Village Education Committee
to exercise the decentralised
power vested upon them by
the government so that the
school would be able to function properly. She also ap-

preciated the work done by
the Committee in constructing two rooms, although the
government had given the
fund for only a one-room extension. She further promised to help the Committee
in future if they continued to
work with sincerity.
Shiwoto Sumi, VEC
Chairman of L. Hotovi Village, in a release stated that
Hetoli Sumi encouraged the
teachers to be sincere in their
duty so that the unseen God
may bless them according to
their work.

The remarks are a direct attack on the integrity
of the state Media, the DPC
stated. The journalist were of
the unanimous view that the
Fourth Estate cannot work under the diktat of a government
and to this, resolved to uphold
the principles of Free Press
even in the days to come.
The Media reminded Imchen: “The media are actively involved in reporting the
facts and have been diligently
highlighting the current scenario in full knowledge of the
public.” The house was of the
view that the HM through his
remark that ‘Media, we cannot believe in whole totality’,
is even questioning the intelligence of the public.
The house also resented
the way Imchen openly humiliated the Media in front of
the Administrative and police
officials as well as members
of the business community
who are the Media persons’
main sources of informa-

Weather Report for 8 districts of Nagaland
from October 22-26, 2008
Districts

Rainfall

Temp

Cloud cover Relative humidity Wind
speed
km/hr
Min (%)

Mon

There will be a
light shower on
24th.

Normal

Mainly clear 53
sky the ﬁrst
4 days with
mainly cloudy
sky on the 5th
day
- do 54

The Deputy Commissioner Mokokchung inaugurated the 10 days special Handloom Expo organized by Handloom & Handicraft Development Cooperation Ltd. Nagaland and sponsored by
Ofﬁce of the Development Commissioner for Handloom, Ministry of Textiles Government of India
New, Delhi at the Youth Resource Sports Hall, Imkongmeren Sports Complex Mokokchung on
October 22. (DIPR)

14th IR tests
on Oct 23
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22
(MExN): Candidates from Dimapur district appearing for the recruitment tests for constable (GD)
in the 14th NAP BN (IR) are directed to report at NAPTC stadium
in Chumukedima on October 23 at
7:30 AM. Candidates should bring
their original documents and also
come prepared for medical screening and outdoor tests, informed the
SP of Dimapur in a notice.

Rice being ripened, harvesting
should be undertaken immediately
as there will be light to moderate rain
from October 24 onwards. After the
harvest of rice, it should be ploughed,
collected and burnt so that the hibernating borers be destroyed. Sowing of gram should be completed by
second week of November. To avoid
incidence of seed/seedling rot, seed
treatment may be given of Trichoderma (biocontrol fungi) @ 4.0g/kg seed,
also use biofertilizers- Rhizobium and
phosphate solubilizing bacteria (PSB)
each @ 25g/kg seed. Ascochyta blight
and wilt is a common problem. Destruction of disease plant debris, deep
ploughing, crop rotation with non leguminous crops and maintenance of
proper spacing of 45-60 cm between
the plants reduce the diseases. In
fruit laden banana plant, it should be
propped up with some support (Bamboo).Banana beetle might attack the
young leaves and fruits. Follow proper sanitation and use polythene bag to
cover the bunch. Also from fruit bearing towards harvest, undertake appro-

priate plant protection measures. For
lentil ensure timely sowing. It can be
sown up to first week of November.
Suitable lentil varieties for mid latitude of NEH Region are L 4147,PL
639, PL 4,VL 1, VL 125 and for low altitude region Pant L 406 and LH 84 -8
(Sapana). Field pea needs a better seed
bed; seed treatment should be done
with Rhizobium culture. Powdery mildew cause heavy losses in yield. Therefore to control the disease use resistant
variety like Rachna. In mustard, yield
losses due to weeds can go upto 70%.
One hand weeding should be given
at 20-25 days followed by hoeing and
second at 40-45 days. Spraying of need
based fungicide and pesticide if the incidence of pest and diseases exceeds
threshold level of crops. Seed sowing
of different vegetables can be continued. Seeds should be treated with appropriate fungicides and insecticides
to ward off early insect, pest and diseases. To protect the crop from rain
water stagnation seeds should be sown
on 25-30 cm wide raised beds. Nursery
should be raised in such places where

16mm

no water stagnation is experienced and
have good drainage system. Run-off
from rains needs to be collected in low
cost tanks for supplemental irrigation
in vegetable and cereals crops. Increasing the infiltration of rainwater into
the soil through tillage, residue management. Fertilizer, insecticide and
pesticide should not be sprayed the
coming days as the weather condition
is not favorable. Mechanical removal
of the diseased plants debris and the
crop residue of previous season should
be carried out. Necessary arrangement
may be made for draining out excess
water from the crop field to avoid water logging. Only healthy wheat grains
should be used to avoid loose smut disease which is the most serious and is
internally seed borne. Wilt of linseed
appears at any stage of crop growth
from seedling till maturity. Therefore
crop rotation should be carried out
and seed treatment should be done
with Bavistin @ 2g/ kg or Thiram or
captan @ 3g/kg seeds.
Imtisenla Walling
ICAR, Jharnapani,
Medziphema

3

tion. Making clear that this
irresponsible conduct of Imchen is a direct attack on the
credibility of the state Media,
the Home minister is served
a 4-point meeting decision:
A public apology from the
Home Minister within 7 days
for questioning the integrity
of the state Media. If he fails
to do so the DPC “Resolved
not to entertain any functions
or press statements relating
to the Home Minister.” He
is also to justify by citing instances when the state Media
had resorted to “yellow journalism”.
The journalists want
Imchen HM to be specific
and not generalize the entire state Media with his socalled “some of the Media
people” that are interested in
“yellow journalism”. Rather,
the journalists suggested,
that he stop dealing with his
“some of the Media people”
in public interest. All Editors
are requested by the DPC to
take up the matter seriously

and render their needful to
the working journalists in
the state. The statement was
appended by DPC president
Dilip Sharma and general
secretary Paudi Renta.

‘Further study on
strengthening laws
to deal with terror’
From page 1

“In addition, provisions
to deal with terrorist and subversive activities also exist in
various other laws such as the
National Security Act, Prevention of Money Laundering Act
etc,” he said. Patil said “suggestions have been received,
from time to time from various
sources regarding the need for
further strengthening of laws
and other related arrangements to deal with terrorism ...
These are being examined on
a continuing basis and appropriate measures will be taken
as found necessary as a part of
this exercise”.

DNSU holds literary competition
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22,
(MExN): The Literary Committee of Dimapur Naga
Students’ Union organised
a “Literary Competition” at
Town Hall here today. Extempore speech, debate and
quiz contests marked the literary competition with students from various schools
and colleges participating
at the event. Secretary, Land
Resource, Government of Nagaland, Norman Putsure was
the chief guest of the day.
In his address, Putsure
impressed upon the students

to work hard and asked of
them to be committed for betterment of the society. Adding
that, at the same time, “we
should be social(ly) responsible”. He also urged the participants to devote to work so
that they ‘wouldn’t be in difficulties’ to attain their goal.
Other highlights of the
program were special number by Suzanne Rongmei and
welcome address by its president, Solomon L. Awomi.
Principal, Salesian College,
Fr. R.K. Guangdiat Nicholas
also spoke at the gathering.

N.F. Railway

CORRIGENDUM

Tender Notice No.44 of 2008:
Please read as “Joint venture will not be permitted in
Tender of S/No.6 only” instead of “Joint venture will be
permitted in Tender of S/No.6 only” of Sl.No.7 of Tender
Notice No.44 of 2008.
The other terms and condition of the above tender
remain unaltered. This has been approved by the
competent authority.
For Sr.Divisional Engineer/C,
N.F. Railway, Maligaon
“SERVING CUSTOMER’S WITH A SMILE”

Great Commission Kids Academy

STARTING LINE-UP

Your daily Meetings, Appointments, Information and Reminder column

WSSU meeting October 23
The Western Sumi Students’ Union has convened its meeting on October 23 at 10:30 at Union ofﬁce, Thahekhu. WSSU general secretary P Iloto Zhimo in a released informed all the executives members
and advisor’s board to attend the meeting positively.

Workshop on statistical quality control

KOHIMA, OCTOBER 22 (MExN): The Department of
Statistics, Kohima Science College, Jotsoma is organizing
a two day workshop from October 24 to 25 on Statistical
Quality Control (SQC) and Operations Research (OR)
Practices- Methods and Applications using software. The
workshop is sponsored by Indian Statistical Institute
(ISI), Kolkata. R.B. Acharjya, IAS, Secretary, Planning
& Co-ordination and Economic & Statistics department,
Government of Nagaland will inaugurate the workshop
on October 24.

Cong condole comrade’s demise

DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22 (MExN): The Congress condole the demise of Kedowhetuo former president of the Kohima District Congress Committee this morning. “Indeed
with his untimely demise the party has lost a true congressman who had served the party with outmost sincerity and
dedication” said a message from NPCC chief KV Pusa.
“My family and I on behalf of the party convey heartfelt
condolences to the bereaved family and pray to God to
grant solace to them in this hour of grief. I also pray for the
departed soul to rest in peace,” the Congress prayed.

DC Mkg informs on CMCF
MOKOKCHUNG, OCTOBER 22 (DIPR): Deputy
Commissioner, Mokokchung and Member Secretary,
Chief Minister’s Corpus Fund (CMCF), has informed
that interested eligible educated unemployed youth may
collect forms and guidelines for CMCF 2008-09, at a cost
of Rs.100/-, from the office of the District Planning Machinery Cell, Mokokchung, from October 23, 2008. The
applicant should be in the age group of 25-40 years. The
last date of submission of completed application forms will
be November 4, 2008.

DNSU informs on ‘hostel guidelines’
DIMAPUR, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): The Dimapur Naga Students’ Union
(DNSU) informed all proprietor and wardens of hostels to collect the guidelines
for hostel at its office during
office hours and also to the
parents and the students to
avail the same.
A press note issued by
its president, Solomon Awo-

mi and general secretary, I
Mangyang Jamir, stated that
“issuing of this guidelines,
based on joint meetings between proprietor/warden/
DNSU held on July 26, 2008,
which has to strictly follow
rules and regulations as mention in guidelines.”

THE ADVANCEMENT in
modern dentistry has made
more option available to give
you a good dental health care
and give a beautiful smile
that you have always desired. An oral hygiene can
boost your self-confidence
and lead you to the road of
personal and career success.
Peraciezie Day Care
Dental Centre, located at
High School area, Kohima
with a well qualified Dentist
Dr. Ato Angami has come in
equipped with these modern
facilities to provide you the
best dental treatment and services. The Centre has Digital
Technology which includes
Intra-oral-digital camera
through which a patient can
himself see on the screen the
disease and the procedure of
treatment; this is intended to

raise people awareness, educate them about oral hygiene
and health care and provide
better treatment, monitoring and diagnosis.
It has Digital X-Ray
which reduces radiation
exposure to improve treatment monitoring, simplifies image file storage and
retrieve high-definition
images for making accurate
analysis and diagnoses,
eliminating film processing and handling.
Another hi-tech feature
of the Centre is the Automatic dental chair with Electronic work programming which
gives comfortable treatment
to the patient.
Peraciezie Day Care
Dental Centre also provide
Ultrasonic Scaling, General
and Child Dentistry, it also
provides a Clean, Sterilized
& Infection Control Equipments and Environment.

GUWAHATI, OCTOBER
22 (AGENCIES): ICRA,
one of India’s leading rating
agencies, has assigned iAAA
rating indicating highest
claims paying ability to SBI
Life Insurance Company
Limited. This rating reflects
SBI Life’s fundamentally financial strong position and
the prospect of meeting its
policyholder’s obligations
as highest. Recently CRISIL reaffirmed its highest
financial strength rating
“AAA/Stable” to SBI Life.
U S Roy, MD & CEO of
SBI Life Insurance said, “To
our customers, iAAA rating
of ICRA further reinforces
the stamp of SBI assurance.
When insuring your life or
your family, today’s financial sector upheavals reinforce how important it is to
choose the right company
that is financially secure
and has the ability to keep

its promises and meet its future obligations.”
The ‘iAAA’ rating takes
into account SBI Life’s
strong parentage, growth
exhibited over the last five
years, distribution model,
extensive reach, strong operational and risk management expertise, low expense
structure, efficient capital
usage and high channel productivity.
SBI Life holds the
unique distinction of being the first private life insurer to break even. As per
the latest IRDA report, the
company has grown upto
August’08 by 103% to Rs
1,764.04 crores in terms of
New Business premium
and ranks 2nd among private players. The company has a market share
of 14.59%amongst private
players and a total market
share of 6.67%.

WASHINGTON, OCTOBER 22 (AGENCIES):
The World Bank has approved a $400 million loan
to the Power Grid Corporation of India, designed
to increase reliable power
exchange between regions
and states. Power Grid is
the world’s third largest
transmission utility.
The loan, from the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development

(IBRD), approved on Tuesday is backed by a Republic
of India guarantee, the Bank
said. It has a 30 year maturity which includes a four-year
grace period. The additional financing to the Fourth
Power System Development
Project (PSDP IV), which
was approved by the World
Bank on March 18 this year,
will finance the completion
of selected transmission
schemes intended to expand

transmission system and capacity. “The power sector
has improved significantly
in recent years, but demand
for electricity continues to
outstrip supply,” said Julia
Fraser, World Bank senior
financial analyst.
“This project will help
the government achieve its
goal of expanding power
generation capacity to more
than 200 gigawatts (200,000
megawatts) by 2012 through

enhancing the country’s
power transmission capacity and enabling power to be
transmitted across regions
and states. It will also help
reduce transmission losses
and, subsequently, cut the
cost of energy.” The World
Bank has been actively involved in the reform and
development of the transmission sector in India, and
specifically in the creation
and strengthening of the

Power Grid Corporation of
India, the Bank said.
This is the fifth direct
loan the Bank has made to
Power Grid since 1993. During this period, the company
has nearly tripled its transmission network, its assets
have grown more than tenfold to $8.9 billion, and revenues have increased more
than eight times to $1.3 billion. Today, Power Grid is
the world’s third largest

GUWAHATI, OCTOBER
22 (MExN): Airtel, India’s
leading mobile service today
announced the launch of the
Airtel wireless data card on its
all India network. The Airtel
Data Card will enable anytime, anywhere instant wireless Internet connectivity for
laptops and other computing
devices, thereby significantly
benefiting the business users,
roamers and travelers. The
data card is GPRS & EDGE
compatible, works on Airtel
networks all across the country and also when roaming
internationally on EDGE/
GPRS enabled GSM networks. The introduction of
the data card adds to Airtel’s
suite of m-business solutions
for its customers. The much
awaited GPRS in prepaid @

Plan I
199
500 MB
Rs. 5/MB

Plan II
449
1 GB
Rs. 3/MB

30p/50KB will be available
for customers in the North
Eastern Region. The customers just need to Dial *567#
for activation & deactivation.
Customers in Postpaid Mobile Office Plan @Rs 290 will
continue to enjoy GPRS for at
least 6 months.
According to Sudipto
Chowdhury, Chief Operating Officer NESA, Bharti
Airtel Ltd., “The launch of
the Airtel Data Card & Prepaid GPRS adds to our suite
of m-business solutions. The
data card will enable the most
comprehensive wireless data
connectivity for people on the
move and that too all across
the country and while roaming internationally. We have
always ensured that Airtel
customers in the North East-

Surf Unlimited
849
Unlimited
NA

ern Region get the best value,
enjoy the finest services and
benefit from cutting edge
products and the data card &
GPRS are no different.”
The Airtel Data Card is a
slim size device, much like a
credit card that fits inside the
standard PCMCIA slot available on most laptops. Airtel
USB Modem works on Windows 2000/XP/XP Tablet/XP
Pro. Customers can also send
and receive SMS from their
laptops using the data card.
The Airtel Data Card comes
with a two years warranty for
its customers. The Airtel data
card will be available at Rs.2999
for USB Modem & Rs.3350 for
PCMCIA Modem. Customers will have the flexibility to
choose from four very attractive monthly tariff plans.

Help build ‘new India’: PM
tells Japanese investors
TOKYO, OCTOBER 22 (PTI): Seeking Japanese
investments to build a “new India”, Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh today said that he has come this
time on a mission: to consolidate the multifaceted
India-Japan strategic relations. “Our relations have
changed considerably over time and we now have a
multifaceted relationship. Japan is not just a source
of development aid but an important investor and
partner in building Asian co-operation,” Singh said
at a luncheon hosted by the Indian and Japanese
business community here. “For me, each interaction with Japan has been a most pleasurable, educative and revealing one. It has revealed to me how
much our two countries can do together, and how
little we have done,” he said. “I have come to Japan
to consolidate this partnership,” Singh said ahead
of his summit talks with his Japanese counterpart
Taro Aso. “We welcome Japanese investment in
our efforts to build a new India,” the Prime Minister said while thanking Tokyo for its generous aid
in the form of Overseas Developmental Assistance
(ODA). India currently gets 30 per cent of all Japanese ODA, becoming the largest recipient, overtaking China. “We are deeply grateful that India has
been the largest recipient of the Japanese ODA for
the last five years. Its most visible symbol is the Delhi Metro,” he said. Describing Japan as the “ecoCivil Aviation Minister Praful Patel, center, interacts with Kingﬁsher Airlines Chairman Vijay Mallya, nomic and technological powerhouse of the world”,
standing center, as Petroleum Minister Murli Deora, left, looks on at the start of a meeting in New Delhi Singh noted that both nations were located in Asia
Wednesday, October 22. (AP Photo)
to which the 21st century undoubtedly belongs.

transmission utility. Despite a fast growing economy, India’s growth potential
is constrained by inadequate
electricity services and limited power generation and
transmission infrastructure, the Bank said. Over
forty percent of the population is without electricity,
and the cost of erratic and
insufficient power supply is
high for industry as well as
households.

India wants to seal
border with Myanmar
escaped across a largely unguarded border to their camps
in neighbouring Myanmar,
police said. Manipur shares
a long porous border with
Myanmar of around 370 km
and security officials want the
entire stretch to be barbedwired to stop smuggling of
weapons and explosives.
Ringed by China, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Bhutan, India’s northeast is home
to more than 200 tribes and
has been racked by separatist revolts since India gained
independence from Britain
in 1947. “We want the centre (federal government) to
fence the border, we cannot let
them (PREPAK) escape after
the incident,” Chief Minister
Okram Ibobi Singh told Reuters on Wednesday. The rebel

group wants to throw non-Manipuris out of the state and demands statehood, which India
says is not possible.
About 700 armed PREPAK rebels have carried out
regular attacks in the state,
including firing a shell at
the chief minister’s fortified
home last month. “It definitely is a cause for concern at
a time when violence in other parts of the region seems
to be declining,” C. Uday
Bhaskar, a strategic analyst
said. In Imphal, police cordoned off the blast site, near
a commando training facility and forensic experts were
examining pieces of metal
to find out what caused the
powerful blast.
“Our plan is to fence the
border and step up foot pa-

National language losing craze in Northeast
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22 (AGENCIES): The national language is gradually losing its craze in the north-eastern
states if the trend of students studying
in Hindi medium in CBSE affiliated
schools there is any indication. The
number of students appearing for the
Class X examination in Hindi medium
conducted by Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) has constantly
declined in the last three years.
In 2006, the number of students appearing for Class X in Hindi medium
in the eight states was 1,675 which declined to 1,485 the next year and again
plummeted to 1,161 this year, Minister of State for HRD M A A Fatmi informed the Lok Sabha. Except Assam,
the number of students in Hindi medium in other states remain negligible.

In Mizoram, there were 18 students in
Hindi medium in 2006 which came
down to 15 and seven in 2007 and this
year respectively. The major languages
used as the medium of instructions in
education in these states include English, Assamese, Bodo, Bengali, Garo,
Khasi, Mizo, Angami, Ao, Konyak,
Lotha, Sema, Kokbarak.
The government has taken a slew
of measures to promote Hindi in these
states, the minister said. The steps include providing financial assistance to
voluntary organisations for propagation
and development of Hindi in non-Hindi
speaking states, which include northeastern states. The government is also providing financial assistance for appointment
and training of Hindi teachers in nonHindi speaking states, he said.

Mizoram police encroach Tripura territory
AGARTALA, OCTOBER 22 (UNI): Taking a serious note over alleged
encroachment of north Tripura’s Chakmapara by Mizoram Armed Police
(MAP), Tripura DGP Pranay Sahay today asked the occupiers to leave as early
as possible. The SDPO (Kanchanpur), after conducting an inquiry, found that
the MAP had occupied Tripura’s territory at Chakmapara under Vangmun
police station, Sahay said. ‘’What they have done is totally illegal’’ Sahay said.
He said the Superintendent of Police (north Tripura) has already requested
his Mizoram counterpart to withdraw policemen at the earliest. Alarmed by
the encroachment, the state government has decided to erect a drop gate at
Chakmapara to ensure dominance of state police. This will also ensure prevention of rampant timber smuggling from Tripura to Mizoram through the
inter-state porous border, sources in the forest department said.

5

trolling along the border,
otherwise it will be difficult
to control the situation,” a
senior intelligence officer
said from Imphal. India says
around 3,000 rebels, live and
train in the camps inside the
jungles of Kabaw Valley of
Myanmar’s Sagaing Division. “We know where militants have their camps across
the border, but we can’t go
inside Myanmar chasing
them,” said a senior military
commander who requested
not to be named. India has a
pact with Myanmar to share
intelligence, but officials said
it was not enough to stop the
insurgency. Militant groups
accuse New Delhi of plundering the region’s mineral Family members mourn the death of those killed in yesterday’s blast in Imphal on October 22 The explosion killed at
and forest resources but in- least Seventeen (17) people and injured several others in the brutal blast at Raigailong near Manipur police commando
complex in Imphal East, Manipur. (UB Photos)
vesting little in return.

Assam seek peace and harmony Army ‘no’ to ULFA’s safe passage
GUWAHATI, OCTOBER 22
(ANI): The recent violence in
Udalguri and Darrang districts
of north Assam has left local
residents of the region, devastated. The victims of the communal riot appeal all to restore
peace and harmony to let the
normal life resume. Lamenting
the ugly turn of the event, Bodos
and Muslims, among whom the
riot took place, doesnt deny the
hand of local militants behind
the communal violence.
“We left our homes, cattle,
sheep and cows. All our belongings are destroyed. We feel helpless. It’s all darkness now. What
more can we say? said a riot-hit
person. Analysts here believe
that all communities should
work together to develop the
BODO area. Located in northern part of the state, Udalguri
and Darrang districts of Assam
havent witnessed the clash for
the first time. Earlier in the year,
15 people lost their lives, when
two communities got into conflict to establish their supremacy
over the land.
Many people here are still
clueless, how the violence broke
out in the first place between
the two communities, which left
more than fifty dead and hundred others injured. The timely

intervention by the state government prevented the violence
from spreading to the neighbouring districts.
“We want peace. Let the Government bring back peace. Let
us live in peace. I wish that chaos
and confusion will soon end and
may peace prevail in the state,”
said another riot-hit man. More
than 2,00,000 people become
homeless in backdrop of the
clash, of whom many have taken
shelter in the government relief
camps. To restore the feeling of
security among the masses, state
government has recruited nearly
8,000 police personnel in the two
riot districts of the region.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gagoi recently said: “Both
groups are eying to grab the
land. I am not saying this group
or that group, but there is a very
small section of people. Vast
majority (of people) have been
living together, they are not
fighting. Very small section is
taking the advantage, they are
eying on the land. Their motive
is to grab the land. These are
miscreant of both groups. And
definitely, we will see the interest of everybody.”
However, local analysts
believe that besides security
there is an urgent need to re-

store confidence and sense of
togetherness among communities to bring in lasting peace
in the region. Bibhu Prasad
Routray, a faculty at the Institute For Conflict Management
in New Delhi, said: “Both parties should sit together and
prepare a mutual agreement
and check what kind of friction do they exactly have. The
points of differences should be
discovered. The dialogue has to
be facilitated and it has to be
done by the state government.
There are organizations at both
the front. The Bodos have their
number of organizations, there
are number of organizations
on the Muslim side as well. So,
they must sit together.
Contrary to some of the reports in the media the clashes
are not between the Bodos and
illegal Bangladeshis settled
there. Analysts describe the conflict as a war between the Bodos
and Muslims to get more territory. With the establishment of
the Bodo Territorial Council,
people were hoping for a phase
of economic development in the
resource rich region. But unfortunately as analysts say there
are some miscreants, who don’t
want the region to take the path
of the progress.

GUWAHATI, OCTOBER
22 (UNI): The Army today
denied that it had agreed to
Dispur’s idea of offering safe
passage to ULFA militants to
facilitate their return to the
mainstream. Army spokesman of 4 Corps, Colonel
Rajesh Kalia said they had
no role in taking any decision
with regard to the safe passage. ‘’That is not the Army’s
job. Our brief is simple and
that is to eliminate insurgency from Assam,’’ he said.
Kalia from 4 corps headquarters at Tezpur informed
that the Army had no such
plans and neither was it interested in entering into state
level policy making level of
counter insurgency operations. His denial came following reports that the Assam
government was interested in
offering safe passage to those
ULFA cadres who wanted
to join the mainstream. The
ULFA’s main strike force ‘A’
and ‘C’ company of the ‘28th
battalion’ had come forward
and there were reports that
‘B’ compan, holed up inside
Mayanmar was also interested in coming back.
The report had said Dis-

pur was likely to approach
the Governor for his approval. But the army today categorically denied any role in
the decision. New Delhi had
earlier rejected a demand
made by the ‘B’ company
for disbanding the Unified
Command as a precondition
for its joining the pro-peace
group Early this month, Dispur had rejected a proposal
by the pro-peace ‘A’ and ‘C’
companies to withdraw the
army from Dibrugarh and
Tinsukia districts.
But the government had
been keen on the idea of offering safe passage to militants since it was convinced
that a truce with ‘B’ company will virtually ‘finish
off ’ ULFA, as it was the only
fighting arm of the outfit in
Upper Assam. The cadres
of the ‘B’ company had initially shown willingness to
come along with their counterparts in ‘A’ and ‘C’ companies, but fled after a series
of strikes by the army killed
several militants in Upper
Assam. Most of them were
now taking shelter in the
NSCN (Khaplang)’s camps
in Myanmar.

davp 08103/13/0047/0809

GUWAHATI, OCTOBER
22 (REUTERS): India needs
to seal its border with Myanmar to stop separatist rebels
carrying out regular attacks in
the northeast, officials said on
Wednesday, a day after a powerful blast killed 17 people in
Manipur. Police said a bomb
on a bicycle blew up in Imphal,
the state capital, late on Tuesday. At least 40 people were
wounded in the attack that
police believe was revenge for
security forces killing at least
eight rebels last month.
Police suspect the separatist People’s Revolutionary
Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK) in Manipur, a state
which has suffered separatist
and tribal insurgencies for the
past 60 years in the troubled
northeast region. The rebels

Dimapur

6

IN-FOCUS

The Power of Truth

The Morung Express

THE EDIT PAGE

C O M M E N T A R Y

Shawn W Crispin

THURSDAY 23 OCTOBER 2008 VOL. III ISSUE 294

Dialogue of the deaf

H

uman failure to respond to the natural call for transformation indicates that they have lost their capacity
to make relevant structural adjustments with change.
In the process humans have become immune to the
cries for truth and justice and fall prey to the ‘dialogue of the
deaf.’ The dialogue of the deaf forces circumstances on people to
readily resort to reactive violence as a means of ensuring change.
Failure to recognize this leads to reconstructing a status quo in
which the oppressed could easily become the oppressor.
Peoples movement are encouraged to embrace broader understandings of knowledge, culture, patterns of interaction and
relationships for social change. One challenge is to seek ways in
which movements can restore the transformative elements of relationship not only between peoples but also between people and
the structures in which they co-exist. Unless this restoration takes
place, movements for social changes will invariably continue to
perpetuate the dominant understanding of relationship, which is
violent in itself.
Social and political movements seeking proactive change towards freedom and dignity require a due process in which people
must seize and reclaim their past. If the people do not seek to create their own version of their past, some other people – in most
cases strangers – will do it from them. Such an act would result in
breaking down indigenous knowledge and cultural values, subsequently reducing space and capacity of indigenous societies to
pass their own stories to following generations. No stories means
no hope and ultimately a people loses ownership of its destiny
and are frozen in time.
Culture is probably one fundamental attribute which can
challenge the dialogue of the deaf. Yet its role in social movements have often been undermined, primarily because culture
has been deconstructed from the standing point of the dominant view. It is not surprising that the dominant view tends to
equate culture with both tradition and custom; while the latter
two concepts are static, culture in itself is a dynamic entity. Culture needs to be redefined in a way that allows a movement to
recover its true essence.
Fanon says, culture is the whole body of efforts made in
the sphere of thought to describe, justify and praise the action
through which people create and keeps itself in existence. Vandana Shiva adds, it is culture which enables a people to establish
and understand what constitutes knowledge. Culture constructs
meaning of the reality and determines the ‘center’ of every being. Schumacher defines the ‘center’ as constituted by ones most
basic convictions; the ideas that really have the power to move
people. The center is the place where one creates an orderly system of ideas that can regulate the direction of the various strivings. All people are all connected with a ‘center’ but are Nagas
in touch with theirs?

LEFT WING |

James Carroll

Courage in an
age of Fear

W

hen friends have confided their fears for Barack
Obama’s physical safety, I have winced and wanted
to shush them. It may be a neurosis peculiar to me,
but I have felt that even to speak of the possibility
of such a thing - you see, I cannot say it - invites the heinous act
to happen. If the prospect of Obama’s being attacked has been a
shadow on his run for president, last week’s debate between the
candidates brought light into the shadow, offering yet another
revelation of why Obama is special.
I came into my adulthood between 1963 and 1968. Already,
readers of a certain age will know why those years are defining.
The assassination of John F. Kennedy, as my generation was just
getting started, confronted us too soon with the starkest truth of
the human drama - every life a tragedy.
But the shock of Dallas was not enough to undo us because
we were young and still believed that heartbreak can motivate
change for the better. We saw that then, as movements against
war and for civil rights drew energy from the political idealism
sparked by JFK. His assassination had made us wary, though, as
if hope is not to be trusted.
When Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert F. Kennedy, our
chosen tribunes of justice and peace, were gunned down weeks
apart in 1968, a flame in our hearts was doused forever. Their
deaths, in addition to crippling the movements for which they
stood, made us see how the tragic can be laced with the absurd.
We knew that, if ever gripped by passionate hope again, we
would see it snatched away unrealized, although we could not
bring ourselves to say by what. And why shouldn’t we, right then,
have stopped being young?
One of the joys of the current season is to see a fresh generation respond to the promise of Obama without reflexes of worry.
Young people have a right to uncomplicated hope, and Obama
is himself young enough to nurture it. But for many Americans,
ghosts haunt the house of politics, a hovering threat for which,
until recently, there were no words. That is the background for
the shudders felt when last week’s presidential debate turned to
the ugliness of what this campaign has surfaced.
John McCain complained about “unfair” criticisms by Georgia Congressman John Lewis of slurs shouted at some McCainPalin rallies. Obama replied that he had distanced himself from
Lewis’s comments. But he explained that Lewis was expressing
concern at McCain supporters shouting, as Obama put it, referring to himself as the target, “things like ‘Terrorist!’ and ‘Kill
him!’ “ There it was: Obama himself using the phrase “Kill him!”
Obama naming the threat of his own assassination. He went on,
“And that your running mate...didn’t say, ‘Hold on a second,
that’s kind of out of line.’ I think Congressman Lewis’s point was
that we have to be careful how we deal with our supporters.” McCain swung into a manic defense of his supporters, displaying
tone-deafness to the unnerving chord that had been plucked by
his own campaign.
McCain is of the generation that was traumatized by the murders of 1968, but that year he was undergoing a separate trauma
of his own in Hanoi. He is not seized, perhaps, by the visceral
dread out of which Lewis was speaking, and which so many recognize. However irrelevant the youthful nihilism of William Ayers, its full horror cannot be grasped without reference to the social breakdown that preceded it.
Obama has shown that he understands the positive and negative legacies of the 1960s, but he is defined by neither. For me,
his calm and reasonable demeanor was never more welcome than
when he repeated that phrase “Kill him!” Unlike me, Obama is
not afraid to put the threat into words, as long as doing so opens
into deeper understanding. The threat thus spoken of is defused.
A Republican mantra has been, “Who is Barack Obama?” But
he has been showing us. His courage runs as deep as his wisdom.
For some Americans, he represents, in addition to everything
else, the unexpected possibility that we can find release in middle
age from what took us hostage when we were young.

Thaksin falls foul of Thai courts

T

to wean the country off its over-reliance on various government buildings and a
on the 80-year-old Bhumibol to mediate state-run television station on August 26.
The court’s decision to drop the chargpolitical and social conflicts.
es against the PAD came just days after
Queen Sirikit expressed her public symConstitutional failure
The progressive 1997 constitution pathies and promised to pay the medical
was in several ways designed, including expenses of PAD protesters injured in a
through the establishment of new check- violent melee with police on October 7.
The decision on Tuesday against
ing and balancing independent institutions, to move the country in that rule- Thaksin, according to some observers,
by-law direction. Critics, including the was legally justified and set an important
military coupmakers and their backers precedent towards greater accountability
in the People’s Alliance for Democracy for Thai political office-holders. However,
(PAD) protest group, contend that Thak- what’s becoming worryingly apparent is
sin purposefully undermined the inde- that certain of Thaksin’s supporters, some
pendence of those fledgling institutions, now galvanized and gathered in Bangkok
through politicized appointments and in a competing protest group now known
other interventions, to vest more power as the United Front of Democracy against
Dictatorship (UDD), will not sit by idly
with the executive.
Over a decade later, the grinding and while the Thai courts bid to unilaterally
increasingly violent political conflict reshape the political landscape.
That was perhaps first witnessed in
playing out on Thailand’s streets is a
testament to the failure of the now abro- the mysterious and still unexplained argated 1997 charter’s envisaged reforms. son attack this year on the newly built resThe military-drafted 2007 charter put idence of former auditor general and milistronger checks on the executive branch, tary-appointed Asset Scrutiny Committee
but simultaneously and controversially member Jaruwan Maintaka, a known royon several fronts moved the country in alist and Thaksin opponent. She was ina less-democratic direction. Even with strumental in the ASC, the investigative
Tuesday’s landmark ruling against Thak- panel which first filed the abuse of power
sin, it is not clear yet that the abrupt shift charges against Thaksin, of which the Sutowards royally endorsed judicial activ- preme Court convicted him on Tuesday.
Those perceptions were also violently
ism will achieve the balance needed to
maintain peace and order after the high- reinforced on Monday by the low-grade
ly revered Bhumibol’s eventual passing. explosive thrown into Supreme AdminLike the royal family, Thailand’s istrative Court president Ackaratorn
courts are by law above criticism. None- Chularat’s personal residence. One govtheless, many of Thaksin’s supporters ernment supporter who spoke on condiopenly complained of what they consid- tion of anonymity to this correspondent
ered political bias in last year’s consti- suggested that the UDD might even contution tribunal decision to dissolve the sider torching the Supreme AdministraTRT while the opposition Democrat tive Court for symbolic purposes after it
party, which at the time also faced elec- ruled in favor of the PAD co-leaders.
If perceptions gather among Thaktoral fraud charges, was let off the legal
hook. Similar grievances were aired by sin’s pro-government supporters that
the same supporters when Samak was royally endorsed Thai courts cannot be
forced by the Constitution Court last trusted to impartially and justly rule in
month to resign his prime ministerial cases related to their escalating political
post for what they viewed as the petty conflict with the anti-government PAD
offense of receiving payment for cook- and their allies in the Democrat partying supplies and transportation to his led political opposition, then Thailand
is likely headed for even more extreme
television program.
They compare that high-stakes verdict street violence in the weeks ahead. If and
with this month’s Administrative Court when that grim eventuality comes to pass,
decision to drop treason and insurrection the only overarching institution left with
charges filed by the government against the power to restore order will be the milthe leaders of the PAD anti-government itary - though likely at a great expense to
protest movement, which led assaults Thailand’s faltering democracy.

wo years after his military
ouster and amid growing
political turmoil between
his supporters and detractors, former prime minister
Thaksin Shinawatra was on
Tuesday found guilty on charges of abuse
of power. While the decision marked a
sort of catharsis in his opponents’ ongoing efforts to make legal charges stick
against the former premier, the verdict is
unlikely to alleviate Thailand’s mounting political tensions.
In a highly anticipated decision,
Thailand’s Supreme Court ruled Thaksin had a conflict of interest in the 773
million baht (US$22.7 million) Bangkok
land deal conducted in 2003 between a
government agency and his wife, Potjaman, who was acquitted of all charges.
The guilty verdict carried a two-year
prison sentence, and if the exiled Thaksin fails to appeal the decision in 30 days,
the court may order for his extradition.
Thaksin and Potjaman fled Thailand
days before the trial began in mid-August
and both have since applied for political
asylum in the United Kingdom, claiming
their personal security would be at risk if
they returned home. Potjaman was earlier convicted on tax evasion charges and
released on bail. Thaksin said by way of
explanation in a note disseminated to the
media after fleeing into self-imposed exile in mid-August that he could not receive a fair trial in Thailand’s courts.
He said then that judges had “no consideration [for the] judicial system and
truth and legal principle” and that he and
his family had been “continuously treated
unjustly”. That assessment was widely
ridiculed a month later, after Thaksin’s
lawyers filed new defamation charges
against critics in a Thai court. As premier,
Thaksin frequently used the courts to stifle media criticism of his administration.
Tuesday’s verdict represents the first
legal conviction against the former prime
minister, who was ousted in a 2006 military
coup for, among other reasons, allegations
of corruption and abuse of power. The precedent will also bolster the legal rationale
behind another corruption case pending
against him, in which prosecutors are bidding to permanently seize 76 billion baht
(US$2.2 billion) of his personal assets.
The decision gives new momentum to
Thailand’s trend towards judicial activism,

a royally endorsed move in which Thai
courts and judges aim to tackle and resolve
the country’s complex and contentious
political problems. That activism was on
display last month when the Constitution
Court ruled on conflict of interest charges
against then-prime minister Samak Sundaravej for hosting and receiving payment
for a television cooking show.
The ruling disqualified him from
the premiership and he has since been
replaced by Thaksin’s brother-in-law,
Somchai Wongsawat. The question now,
though, is for how long - conflict of interest allegations have been brought against
Somchai for apparently holding shares
in a private communications company,
which is barred by law for Thai political office holders. Somchai has to date
shrugged off the allegations, first raised
by an opposition-aligned senator.
More broadly, the Constitution Court
is expected to rule in the coming weeks
on an Election Commission recommendation to dissolve the ruling People’s
Power Party (PPP) and two of its junior
coalition partners on electoral fraud
charges. The court has already handed
down a guilty verdict on similar charges
against PPP provincial powerbroker and
Thaksin loyalist, Yongyuth Tiyapat, who
as a result was forced to resign his post
as parliament speaker. A decision against
the PPP could pave the way for new elections, with most, though not necessarily
all, PPP members regrouping under the
Puea Thai party banner.
Thailand’s courts, historically weaker and prone to influence from the
more powerful executive and legislative
branches, first started to exert political
muscle in May 2007, when a military-appointed constitutional tribunal ordered
the dissolution of Thaksin’s former ruling Thai Rak Thai (TRT) party on electoral fraud charges. The landmark ruling also banned 111 of the party’s senior
executive members, including Thaksin,
from politics for five years.
That decision was famously preceded
by His Majesty King Bhumibol Adulyadej’s nationally televised address to the
panel’s judges, in which he urged them to
rule justly and not on the basis of whether
their decision would be popular. Academics have noted the so-called move towards
the “judicialization” of Thai politics is
viewed as necessary in certain royal circles

J

The limits of nuclear power

ohn McCain has called for building
45 new nuclear power plants by 2030
and 100 eventually. Barack Obama’s
Web site says, “It is unlikely that we
can meet our aggressive climate goals if we
eliminate nuclear power from the table.”
But to what extent can nuclear power really help achieve energy independence?
There’s a problem about nuclear energy
that gets little attention. At present, fossil
fuels provide 87 percent of the world’s total
energy while nuclear power plants provide
just 4.8 percent. (All nuclear power plants
currently generate electricity, accounting
for about 15 percent of world electricity
generation, while fossil fuels produce almost 67 percent of the electricity.)
The best estimates put the amount
of uranium that can be mined economically (what geologists call the reserves)
at about 5.5 million metric tons, and
according to the International Atomic
Energy Agency, today’s nuclear power
plants use 70,000 metric tons a year of
uranium. At this rate of use, the uranium
that could be mined economically would
last about 80 years.
Suppose it were possible to replace
all fossil fuels with nuclear power. Suppose that we could use nuclear energy to
make liquid and gas fuels to power vehicles, and could do this quickly using
conventional nuclear power plants. We
would have to build enough plants to increase energy production by 17.4 times,
which means using 1.2 million tons of
uranium ore each year. At that rate of
use, the reserves of uranium would be
used up in less than five years. Geologists also estimate that there are about

Daniel B. Botkin

35 million tons of uranium out there regardless of the cost of mining it (geologists call this identified resources). With
nuclear power replacing all fossil fuels,
even these would be used up in 29 years.
Thus, if the goal is to counter global
warming by replacing all fossil fuels with
nuclear power, this goal cannot be met.
Advocates of nuclear power point out that
it doesn’t have to replace all other sources
of energy. Let’s consider that approach.
At a recent meeting, the Group of
Eight major industrial countries agreed
to reduce carbon emissions 50 percent by
2050. Suppose nuclear energy increased
just enough each year
to enable fossil-fuel
use to decline at a constant annual rate, to 50
percent by 2050, while
nuclear power therefore increased to provide 50 percent of the world’s energy. At
this rate of use, uranium reserves would
run out by 2019, and the estimated maximum of 35 million metric tons of uranium in identified resources would run
out by year 2038, gaining us less than
two decades. There are some important
caveats. Exploring for minerals is done
on an as-needed basis, and large areas of
the world may have been little explored
for uranium. Every mining geologist and
mine corporation executive will tell you
that estimates of total reserves of a mineral are just that - estimates - and that

the reserves of many minerals always increase over time.
This approach may be all right for the
planning time of mining companies, but
it won’t work for a long-term global energy strategy based on adequate supplies
of uranium. Considering the enormous
costs of building the large number of nuclear power plants that are contemplated
to replace fossil fuels, the United States
would be courting disaster if it chose this
route with nothing but blind faith that
there may be a lot more uranium out
there if we only look for it.
We need to know a lot more about
available uranium
resources and where
they are. If they are
in unfriendly countries, they might
not be available at all. Nuclear power
advocates also argue that it is possible to
recover significant amounts of uranium
from spent fuel. According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, “In 2004,
two-thirds of the uranium used was newly
mined; the rest came from civil and military stockpiles, spent fuel reprocessing
and re-enrichment of depleted uranium.”
But the amount from spent fuels is not
specified, and a reprocessing program to
deal with 1.2 million tons of used uranium
would be a major undertaking, perhaps
not technologically feasible in the near future. Others suggest that breeder reactors,

WRITE-WING

which produce more nuclear fuel than
they use, will solve the problem.
The United States experimented
with a few breeder reactors from 1964 to
1994, but they were shut down or work on
them halted in the 1990s. Other nations
have tried building them, and some are
considering or developing them. But to
my knowledge perhaps only one or two
breeder reactors are in use and providing
electrical energy anywhere in the world,
and these are probably not “breeding.”
There are reasons for this: The technology is not there yet, and the reactors
are dangerous in themselves, even without
considering their potential use in making
atomic weapons. They are the kind of nuclear reactors that everybody fears Iran or
North Korea might build and use to make
atomic bombs. In sum, the breeder-reactor route, if it is practical at all, is a long
way in the future as a major contributor
to the world’s energy, and certainly not a
way to reduce our dependence on fossil
fuels now or in the near future.
The bottom line: From what is
known about resources of uranium and
the present and future state of nuclear
power plants, there is no way that nuclear power can play a dominant role in
the world’s energy supply. This is not to
say that it could play no role in a mixed
strategy involving many kinds of energy,
only that those who continue to press for
a greater role for nuclear power must
first show that there will be enough uranium to assure that thousands of nuclear power plants built at enormous cost
would not soon stand idle - and leave our
economy standing idle too.

Letters to the Editor should be sent to: The Morung Express, House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur - 797112, Or –email: editor@morungexpress.com.
All letters (including those via email) should have the full name and Postal address of the sender.
Readers may please note that the contents of the articles, letters and opinions published do not reﬂect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

THURSDAY

THE MORUNG EXPRESS

23 OCTOBER 2008

7

PERSPECTIVE
NEWS ANALYSIS, FEATURE AND DISCOURSE

It's all go for moon-struck India

A
Raja Murthy

52-hour countdown began on Monday morning to India's first mission to the moon, with
the unmanned spacecraft Chandrayaan-I being revved up to launch
the country's expanding space ambitions.
These include a manned moon mission
by 2015, a robotic Mars visit by 2012 and
even a moon colony as a base for interplanetary exploration. The 1.3 tonne, cubeshaped orbiter Chandrayaan-1, which
looks like a hurriedly gift-wrapped parcel in gold paper, will be blasted off from
the Sriharikota space port near Chennai
in the pre-dawn hours of Wednesday, if
weather gods keep the northeast monsoon rains away. Unlike previous moon
missions from Earth, Chandrayaan-1 will
make history as the first lunar craft to undertake a comprehensive close mapping
of the moon, instead of focusing only on
specific regions or aspects.
Chandrayaan, meaning "moon vehicle" in Hindi, will "prepare a three-dimensional atlas [with a high spatial and
altitude resolution of 5 millimeters to
10m] of both the near and the far side of
the moon", according to the Indian Space
Research Organization (ISRO). That India should be shooting for the moon at a
time when the global economy is trembling fearfully speaks not just for the
country's impressive economic stability,
but also the quality of its space scientists.
They have ensured that Chandrayaan-1
also makes history as the least expensive
moon ambassador from Earth.
Chandrayaan-1 cost US$74 million,
cheap if compared, for instance, to Japan's $279 million Selene (Selenological
and Engineering Explorer) moon probe,
which took off from Japan's Tanegashima island space port on September 14,
2007. Moreover, $20 million of the $74
million Chandrayaan-1 cost went into
valuable reusable infrastructure, such as
building a trio of Earth-stationed trackers of moon-mission data - the Deep
Space Network, the Spacecraft Control
Center and the Indian Space Science
Data Center, all located at Byalalu, near
Bangalore in the south.
"We are spending hardly 0.5% of our
national budget on our scientific programs, and what we are spending on
Chandrayaan is hardly only 3% of our
budget over the last five years," ISRO
chairman Madhavan Nair told media.
Nair, who hopes to establish the
world's first space institute with a fouryear graduation course, which would lead
to an ISRO job, often mentions being
pleasantly surprised at a Madras School
of Economics study five years ago that revealed how India gets a $2 return for every
$1 invested in its space program. India's
space budget of $1 billion is one-tenth
that of the US's National Aeronautics and
Space Administration (NASA) and less
than half of China's space program.
Nair, however, does not mention
that the study also pointed out that the
average salary of ISRO scientists is oneeighth that of the US and Europe. The
low labor costs are a major reason for India's comparative advantage in satellite
production and launch costs, said the
Madras School of Economics study.

More credit is due to Indian scientists as lower pay has not induced them
to leave for higher-paying jobs abroad,
or compromise on quality in producing
advanced technology such as in Chandrayaan-1 to fly on a five-day journey to
the moon and orbit it for two years. With
India's Chandrayaan, China's Chang'e
(named after the Chinese goddess of the
moon) and Japan's Selene moon probe,
Asia has earned a considerable edge in
humanity's early steps into exploring
what lies around the moon and beyond.
"The real space race is in Asia," acknowledged the headline of a Newsweek
article in its September 29, 2008, issue,
and it went further in its latest issue
declaring India to be a world leader in
practical applications of space technology which can improve the quality of life
on Earth, such as assisting in communications, agriculture, weather forecasting,
rural development and telecasting.
Besides the nationwide celebrations
that will follow on Wednesday if the launch
successfully takes off, more substantial
carrots dangling for the moon expedition
include the prospect of mining lunar minerals such as magnesium, aluminum, silicon, calcium, iron and titanium.
Added delights include the possibility of finding deposits of uranium and
thorium to feed nuclear power plants
on Earth. So the global scientific community is also expected to keenly track
Chandrayaan-1, which also hopes to locate helium-3 on the moon, considered
an environmentally clean nuclear fuel.
Chandrayaan-1 will firmly establish India as a leading space power. As

ISRO chairman Nair pointed out, India
has so far managed to send satellites to
a 36,000 kilometers distance in a geostationary orbit, but the moon mission
will carry India's national flag tricolors
to a distance of 400,000 km. Also aboard
Chandrayaan-1 are 11 scientific instrument payloads, including from the US,
Germany, Sweden and Bulgaria.
"The ISRO is not charging any money for the payload," said Sridhar Murthy, executive director of Antrix, the
marketing division of the ISRO. "Chandrayaan-1 is purely a non-commercial,
scientific mission." Murthy told Asia
Times Online that India's moon mission
is part of a space program expansion
that includes increasing the capacity of
its Geosynchronous Satellite Launch
Vehicle (GSLV-3) rocket to carry larger
satellites (it can presently launch a 2.5
tonne satellite), launching a new ocean
observation satellite and advanced communication satellites.
While Nair's claim of India having a
technologically superior space program
to that of neighboring China might be
hotly debated across the border, India
has already launched 50 satellites since
its first satellite, Aryabhata, was sent up
on the Russian launch vehicle Intercosmos on April 19, 1975.
Significantly, the low-budget Chandrayaan-1 ensures India is fast consolidating its reputation as a key cost-effective player in the growing stakes in global
space commerce. India has indigenously
developed two satellite launch vehicles
to carry payloads, the Polar Satellite
Launch Vehicle (PSLV) used for launch-

ing IRS satellites and Geosynchronous
Satellite Launch Vehicles (GSLV).
On April 28, India became the first
country to send 10 satellites in one
launch when the PSLV-C9 took off from
Sriharikota with India's CARTOSAT-2A
and IMS-1 satellites, as well as eight micro-satellites from other client countries.
Chandrayaan-1, too, will get a ride from
India's workhorse space taxi, the 14year-old, 45-meter tall, 295-tonne Polar
Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV), in an
upgraded version the PSLV-C11.
The Chandrayaan-1 payloads include the US's Miniature Synthetic Aperture Radar (MiniSAR) from the Applied Physics Laboratory, Johns Hopkins
University and Naval Air Warfare Center, Bulgaria's Sub KeV Atom Reflecting
Analyser (SARA) from the Institute of
Space Physics, Germany's Near Infra Red
spectrometer (SIR-2) from Germany's
Max Plank Institute, Lindau, Bulgaria's
Radiation Dose Monitor Experiment
(RADOM), and the US's Moon Mineralogy Mapper (M3) from Brown University
and NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
Not to be missed is the juicy irony of an
Indian spacecraft carrying a NASA payload - the US led the global ban of high
technology to India's space and nuclear
program for decades after it tested its first
atomic bomb in 1974. This, from the owner of the world's largest nuclear weapon
arsenal, came as a blessing in disguise as
Indian scientists brilliantly worked out
indigenous technology that is now advanced enough for the US and European countries to have a piggyback ride in
South Asia's first moon mission.

New HIV Vaccine Trials Raise Hopes

Stephanie Nieuwoudt
Inter Press Service

A

fter two HIV vaccine trials
were halted for safety reasons last year, a new trial is
set to commence within the
next few months in South
Africa and the United States. Scientists
will test a new vaccine formula produced
in South Africa. It will be the first time a
HIV vaccine manufactured in a developing country will be trialed in the developed world. Last year, trials using Merck
Adenovirus 5 (AD 5) in South Africa as
well as in the US and Australia had to be
suspended because the US trial showed
increased susceptibility to HIV acquisition among uncircumcised men. Dr John
Moore of the Department of Immunology and Virology at Weill Cornell Medical
College in New York, said the "vaccines
were simply not good enough to stimulate the necessary immune responses
at a sufficient level" at the Global HIV
Vaccine Enterprise's AIDS Vaccine 2008
Conference in Cape Town last week.
Not all health experts are convinced
about the benefits of further vaccine trials, however, doubting that scientists will
ever be able to develop an effective vaccine
against HIV because of the unique nature
of the virus. "HIV is an amazingly diverse
virus. There can be 10,000 plus variations
of the virus and it is constantly changing.
Because the virus mutates rapidly it is
difficult to develop a vaccine," explained
Alan Bernstein, executive director of the
Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise, an international alliance of scientists, researchers
and donor organisations.
Risk control
Experts are also concerened about
the health and safety of trial participants. "More basic research should be
done prior to us testing the next candi-

date vaccine," cautioned Francois Venter,
president of the Southern African HIV
Clinicians Society, while generally supporting efforts to find a vaccine. "We desperately need a vaccine, even if it takes a
generation. We need to keep looking for
every possible option."
At the conference, researchers said
vaccine trials will from now on focus on
finding out how to help the body produce
antibodies to prevent infection with HIV
altogether. Dr. Lynn Morris, head of the
AIDS unit at South Africa’s National Institute for Communicable Diseases, said
this was a necessary step as scientists did
still not know enough about how the human immune system deals with HIV.
Scientists complaint that lack of financial support from governments impacts negatively on research outcomes,
especially in countries like South Africa, where HIV/AIDS policies and their
delayed implementation have been
criticised by experts all over the world.
However, the research community now
pinned its hopes on newly appointed
health minister Barbara Hogan, who replaced disputed Manto Tshabalala-Msimang just a few weeks ago.
Hogan told conference delegates that
she was deeply committed to making
HIV/Aids a priority during her tenancy:
"There cannot be any more important
meeting at this time. This is the continent, the region and a country in most
need of evidence-based intervention to
the HIV and Aids epidemic."
Hogan said she believed that it was
not too late for South Africa to improve
its health care provision. "The fact that
500,000 people are already receiving
ARVs (antiretroviral treatment) in this
country is proof that the damage (done
by the previous health minister) is being
repaired." She admitted, however, that
she felt challenged when being appointed as minister of health.

Ethical concerns
Vaccine researchers said they were
highly cautious about not repeating the
same mistakes from previous trials and
vowed to closely adhere to ethical boundaries in the race to be the first to find a
vaccine. "It would be unethical to embark on future trials if the same risk factors as those in the (previous) trials were
present," said Professor Ruth Macklin of
the Albert Einstein College of Medicine
in New York. "The best course of action
would be to avoid future trials that include probable causes of enhanced susceptibility (of HIV infection)."
"The question is, for example, if there
should be exclusion criteria for uncircumcised men," Macklin said, since the
health of uncircumcised men was put
at risk during previous trials. Scientists
need to weigh up potential benefits and
risks for trial participants carefully before embarking on a new series of tests.
"We need to consider benefit to individuals and benefit to science and society. In
most research trials there is no guaranteed
benefit. The drug or vaccine being tested
is experimental -- it may or may not work,"
said Professor Keymanthri Moodley of the
Bioethics Unit at the University of Stellenbosch. "In the case of Aids vaccine trials,
the risks are significant, but the benefits,
if an effective vaccine is developed will be
enormous," she added.
To lower risks, the upcoming vaccine
trials will initially take place on a small
scale before they are tested widely. The
new products, SAAVI MVA and SAAVI
DNA, will be tested on a small group of
48 participants -- 36 people from Johannesburg and Cape Town and twelve from
Boston, said Dr Glenda Gray, researcher
with the HIV Vaccine Trials Network
(HVTN) and the South African Aids
Vaccine Initiative (SAAVI).
"The participants will be men and women from low risk groups, including some

who are celibate and some who are in monogamous relationships with known HIVnegative partners," she further explained.
SAAVI DNA has been developed by
researchers at the University of Cape
Town’s Institute for Infectious Diseases
and Molecular Medicine, while the MVA
vaccine has been conceptualised by UCT
scientists and beenn developed and manufactured with the input of international
biotech company Therion and the USbased National Institute of Health.

Dearest Apong,

Environmental pollution
– vs – A Heinous crime
against humanity
“Environment” includes Water, Air and Land and the interrelationship which exists among and between water, air and land, and human
beings, other living creatures, plants, micro-organism and property.
“Environment Pollutant” means any Solid, Liquid or Gaseous substance present in such concentration as may be, or tend to be, injurious to environment. Human Survival is menaced by another equally
homicidal missile euthemistically described as Environmental Pollution. Articles 48-(A) of the Constitution provide: protection and improvement of environment and safeguarding of Forest and Wild Life.
The State shall endeavour to protect and improved the environment
and to safeguard the Forest and the Wild Life of the Country.
It is made clear that Laws are enacted by Government Policy according to public opinion and aimed to eradicate crimes by
punishing the defaulting criminals. In our country according to
Teware Committee’s data, there are nearly 500 environment Laws
including 17 State Law to control the crime of pollution and nature destruction. Article 47, 48 (A). 51 (g) Union list entry No 31
and State list entry No.6 clearly speaks of environmental protection and to take health care of citizens of the State because citizen
health is fundamental of national progress. But in the existing
polluted atmosphere , the World Health Organisation report exhibited that more than 80% of sickness and diseases in India are
due to lack of pure water and proper sanitation.
Today for the work of a handful of polluters, the entire humanity
is suffering and people are being deprived of their legitimate right of
clean environment. They are forced to drink polluted water, compelled
to breach polluted air, pressed to live under abnormal sound and atmospheric pollution. It is unfortunate that man had forgotten that he is a
product of his environment and all his social moral, spiritual and economic well being depends on his harmony with nature only.
In F.K. Husain Vs Union of India, the Court held right to life is
not only a mere animal existence and its attributes are manifold as life
itself. The right to sweet water, fresh air and the right to wholesome
environment are interpreted to be attributed to the right to life guaranteed by Article 21 of the Constitution. In Subhas Kumar Vs State
of Bihar, AIR 1991 SC 420, the apex judiciary held: “Right to life is a
fundamental right under Article 21 and it includes the right of enjoyment of pollution- free water and for full enjoyment of life”.
In Charanlal Sahu Vs Union of India. AIR 1990 SC 1480, it was
held that “State should not play a passive role…. When assaults
on environment caused by adverse socio – economic policies, pose
a threat to the ecology, Courts cannot sit with their eyes closed
…..Environmental protection is a constitutional mandate……It is
the commitment of the country wedded to welfare.
In Dr. B.L. Wadehra’s case reported in (1996) 2 SCC 594 the
Supreme Court held that Residents have Constitutional as well
as statutory right to live in a clean City against Non-performance
of mandatory duties by Municipal Corporation Authorities Concerned have a mandatory duty to collect and dispose of the garbage/waste generated form various sources in the city non-availability of funds, inadequacy or inefficiency of staff, insufficiency
of machinery etc. cannot be pleaded/rejected as grounds for nonperformance of their statutory obligations.
Further because India boasts to be rich with cultural heritage of
ancestors, hence to protect ancient monuments, in the famous “Tajmahal Case” a very strong step was taken by Supreme Court to save
the Tajmahal Case being polluted by fumes and more than 200 factories were closed down. In the case of Shatistar of 1990, AIR 1990
SC 630 (pp.8 to 13), Supreme Court declared in a clear tone that a
citizen has right for a decent environment in his living area.
In our country the pollution control boards and environmental
protection measures are only confined to intellectual deliberations
on a higher platform. Due to lack of public support all the enactments for environmental protection, show poor result and also the
enforcement of the law is lax. All the environment protection laws
should be brought under one umbrella and deterrent punishments
need to be provided for environment- destructing criminal.
Now environment protection force, protection centres, like Police Stations to tackle and prosecute the criminal and environment
protection Courts should be brought into existence.
Above all, we need a revolution which can be achieved a society
by spreading awareness movement in connection with necessities of
environment protection. Because, unless the citizen came forward to
protect their own environment and safe humanity, all this step shall
prove to be impasse and human civilization dragged toward destruction. It is the duty of every citizen to protect and improve the environment and to safeguard the Forest, Lakes, Rivers and Wild Life and
should not forget to love compassion for living creatures. Because
they are very much members of our family. In Geneses Chapter 1 God
saw that It was Good. And we inherited this beautiful Earth which is
good in the eye of God from our forefather free of cost so also we have
to handover this beautiful earth to the next younger generation without any committing mischief or environmental pollution otherwise
the next generation will curse on us as we are answerable.
R. Daniel,
Advocate, Gauhati High Court, Imphal.

Our Environment
Dorothy Krusky

It's splashed across the news these days,
global warming, pollution, our environment,
destroyed by the very persons
who are trying to reverse the damage.
Does it REALLY take one hundred scientists
to tell us what we already know?
All those studies tell the same story
as the Polar Bear's image ﬂoats on the ice.
The camera's zoom in as they speak
of impending dangers not too far off.
Try explaining that to our wildlife,
slowly they're going extinct.
It's all BIG news when a certain speicies
is put on the endangered list.
I'd like to think we're not to blame
but that would show such ignorance.
Look back to the times gone by,
you only have to think of family life.
Our parents practiced recycling
long before it became the rage.

In the road of life there may be obstacles, and there may be moments
of jubilations, but whatever comes
along, always take everything in
your stride and believe in yourself
and God. Don't give up on your
dreams but work hard at making
every one of them come true! Wishing you many, many happy returns
of this special day! God bless.
With love, Abao, Ayao, Maong, Atao Aien
& Asung + everyone else (u know who!)

"Turn off the lights! Close the doors!"
Eat fresh garden vegetables, no pesticides!
Clothes past down, worn right through,
then piled away to use as rags.
Plasic bags, cardboard boxes
all of them re-used.
It was only common sense you see
to make the most of everything.
I sit back and wonder why such a fuss
when all this mess was created
by big companies and greedy men
the dollar became their god.
We are responsible for all the changes
do not blame those before us
for they have lived a life of recycling
we chose to live a life of convenience.

Readers may please note that, the contents of the articles published on this page do not reﬂect the outlook of this paper nor of the Editor in any form.

C
M
Y
K

8

Dimapur

23 October 2008

NEWS FILE
24 drowned in
Bihar boat mishap

KHAGARIA, OCTOBER 22 (PTI): Twenty-four women
were drowned when an overcrowded boat capsized here today. The boat, carrying the women to the other side of the river for cutting grass, overturned, drowning them, in the midstream near Dudhela village under Pasraha police station
early today, Superintendent of Police Kamal Kishore Singh
told PTI. Singh said while all the 24 bodies were recovered
by local divers, a boy was still missing. All the victims were
residents of Dudhela and Budhnagar villages, he said.

Delhi cabbies accused
of killing NRI held
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 21 (NDTV): Two taxi drivers
have been arrested for shooting an NRI who landed at Delhi’s International Airport on October 10. K T Sameer, a businessman from Riyadh, had arrived in Delhi from Ahmedabad. He took one of the many black and yellow cabs parked
at the airport in which there were some people already sitting. The driver took him to Manesar and allegedly forced
the NRI to reveal the codes of his ATM card and then shot
him. His body was later found on the Delhi-Jaipur Highway.
The two taxi drivers were arrested for the crime on Monday
as they were trying to slip back into the city. A sketch of the
businessman has been released by the police who was shot
by his taxi driver. “We came together and went to Mumbai
and then Ahmedabad. He had some personal work in Delhi.
He came here on October 10. I tried his number on October 11, but he didn’t respond,” said Abdul Dafur, deceased’s
friend. Two months ago, the driver of a pre-paid taxi was sentenced to death for raping and killing an Australian woman
in 2004. The Delhi Police insist that pre-paid taxis are now
more carefully monitored and makes an appeal.

Repeal law on punishment for
suicide survivors: Commission
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22 (AGENCIES): People who
survive a suicide attempt need care and compassion and not
punishment, the Law Commission has said while asking the
government to repeal the penal provisions that deal with the
issue. Law Commission Chairman Justice A R Lakshmanan
in his 210th report said, “Attempt to suicide may be regarded
more as a manifestation of a diseased condition of mind deserving treatment and care rather than an offence to be visited with
punishment.” The report, recently presented to Law Minister H R Bhardwaj, recommends a repeal of Section 309 of IPC
to relieve the distress and sufferings of a suicide survivor. The
criminal law must not act with misplaced overzeal and it is only
where it can prove to be apt and effective machinery to cure the
intended evil that it should come into the picture, he said. Section 309 of IPC says that whoever attempts to commit suicide
and does any act towards the commission of such offence, shall
be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may
extend to one year or with fine, or with both. Only a handful of
countries in the world, like Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia,
Singapore and India have persisted with the law which treats
suicide survivors as criminals. Justice Lakshmanan before submitting the report on Humanisation and Decriminalisation of
Attempt to Suicide, had studied the practice in the West as part
of the exercise to suggest repealing of Section 309 of IPC.

Stockbroker kills pregnant
wife, self over losses
C
M
Y
K

NATIONAL

Thursday

MUMBAI, OCTOBER 22 (CNN-IBN): A man working
with a stock broking firm killed his 5-month-pregnant
wife before committing suicide. The incident came to
light in Kandivali locality of Mumbai. Police suspect the
deceased, Parag Tanna had huge investments in the stock
exchange and his recent losses drove him to commit suicide. “We have found a suicide note beside the body and he
has written in that I am killing myself after murdering my
wife, and that no one else should be held responsible. The
reasons we are looking into include monetary problems
and maybe he was heavily into debt due to his financial
condition,” said a Senior police Inspector from the Kandivali police station. The two had been married for the
last three years. Police said that the suicide note adds that
Tanna was killing his wife and himself because he felt he
wouldn’t be able to take care of his baby and buy a flat.

US keen to partner with
India in anti-piracy patrol
ON BOARD USS RONALD REAGAN, OCTOBER 23
(AGENCIES): With India rushing its warship to Gulf of
Aden after pirates attacked cargo ships carrying its nationals, the US says it is keen to partner with New Delhi to jointly
patrol the high seas off the African coast to deter the armed
outlaws. “The Indian ships presence in Gulf of Aden will
provide both of us an opportunity to work together (against
pirates) and we are looking forward to it,” said US Navy Captain Kenneth J Norton on board USS Ronald Reagan, the
world’s largest warship, as it sailed in the Arabian Sea about
130 miles off Goa coast. Washington’s views on Indian warship patrolling the region comes in the wake of over 35 incidents of piracy attacks on cargo ships in Gulf of Aden in the
last three months. As recently as Monday, a dhow with 13
Indian sailors on board was hijacked by armed pirates and
they were rescued by self-styled Somalian coast guard gunmen yesterday. But there has been no word about 18 Indian
sailors, who were taken hostage by Somalian pirates after hijacking Japanese-owned merchant vessel MV Stolt Valor on
September 15 this year. “US and its Coalition ships are regularly deployed in Gulf of Aden and along the African coast to
act as a deterrent to the pirates operating there, said Captain
Norton, the commanding officer of Ronald Reagan, which is
participating in the Indo-US naval exercise Malabar-08.

Somnath upset as MPs
refuse to listen him
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER
22 (CNN-IBN): A known
cricket buff, Speaker Somnath Chatterjee, was in a
good mood when he walked
in to the House after India’s
historic victory over Australia but the proceedings didn’t
let the humour stay there for
long. Even Republican Party
of India (RPI) MP Ramdas
Athavale’s cell phone going
off during the proceedings
didn’t ruffle the normally
stickler for the rules Speaker.
But the good humour
didn’t last long with Bahujan
Samaj Party (BSP) and Left
MP's questioning the Speaker’s ruling to treat as close a
BSP MP's sensational charge

that the CBI issued threats to
his party. “Don’t make allegations like this, be truthful in
the House,” the Speaker said.
“Everybody is talking, nobody
is listening,” he added.
His former party colleagues
adding to the din also got scolding from Somnath. “Your deputy leader is more anxious to disturb you than others,” he said.
Even a threat to adjourn the
house till next year didn’t calm
tempers in the house – almost
making the speaker stop just
short of saying. “Let this house
go to…,” he continued. But it
was this much and no further
for the speaker. “This House
stands adjourned till 1400 hrs
IST,” Somnath said.

The Morung Express

India launches ﬁrst moon mission

SRIHARIKOTA, OCTOBER 22 (AFP): India successfully launched its first lunar
mission Wednesday, marking
a major boost for the country's space programme and a
new step in the fast-developing Asian space race. Cheers
rang out at mission control as
the unmanned lunar orbiting
spacecraft Chandrayaan-1 was
launched with an Indian-built
rocket from the Satish Dhawan
Space Centre in Sriharikota on
the southeastern coast.
Officials said the lift-off,
which took place in cloudy
skies at 6:22 am (0052 GMT),
was a "great success", with
the rocket placing the craft
into a transfer orbit around
the globe within 19 minutes.
"Our scientific community has once again done the
country proud and the entire
nation salutes them," Indian
Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh said in a message from
Japan, where he was on an official visit.
The head of the Indian
Space Research Organisation (ISRO), Madhavan
Nair, said it was a "historic
moment" for the country.
"It has been a remarkable
performance by the launch
vehicle," he said of the liftoff from the national space
centre in the state of Andhra
Pradesh, 80 kilometres north
of Chennai. ISRO is send-

will also include the sending
of a probe onto the lunar surface, will cost India 80 million dollars.
"Today what we have
charted is a remarkable journey for an Indian spacecraft
to go to the moon and try to
unravel the mysteries of the
Earth's closest celestial body
and its only natural satellite,"
Nair said. India is hoping the
mission will boost its space
programme into the same
league as regional powerhouses Japan and China, and
Nair said ISRO was aiming at
a manned space flight by 2015,
with work on a two-person
capsule already underway.
As well as looking to
carve out a larger slice of the
lucrative commercial satellite launch market, India, Japan and China also see their
space programmes as an important symbol of their international stature and economic development. The launch
was carried live on most IndiIn this photo provided by the Indian Space Research Organi- an television channels – with
zation, India's maiden lunar mission Chandrayaan-1, or Moon
Craft in ancient Sanskrit, is seen successfully taking off at
the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in Sriharikota, about 100
kilometers (63 miles) north of Chennai, Wednesday, October
22. India launched its ﬁrst mission to the moon Wednesday,
rocketing a satellite up into the pale dawn sky in a two-year
mission to redraw maps of the lunar surface. (AP Photo)

ing the Chandrayaan-1 on a
two-year orbital mission to
provide a detailed map of the
mineral, chemical and topo-

one channel using the theme
music for "Star Wars" to accompany the countdown.
Some critics, however, have
questioned whether it makes
sense to spend so much money on space when hundreds
of millions of Indians still
live in dire poverty.
India started its space programme in 1963, developing
its own satellites and launch
vehicles to reduce dependence
on overseas agencies. It first
staked its case for a share of the
commercial launch market
by sending an Italian satellite
into orbit in April last year. In
January, it launched an Israeli
spy satellite in the face of Iranian protests. But it still has a
long way to go to catch up with
China which, together with
the United States, Russia and
the European Space Agency, is
already well established in the
commercial launch sector.
Chinese officials have spoken of a manned mission to the
moon in the future, after following the United States and

the former Soviet Union last
month by carrying out a space
walk, and wants to establish an
orbiting space lab. Japan has
also been boosting its space
programme and has set a goal
of sending an astronaut to the
moon by 2020. Japan's first
lunar probe, Kaguya, was successfully launched in September last year.
In addition to the commercial ramifications, the
development of a space race
in Asia has security implications, with the potential for
developing military applications such as intelligence
gathering and space-based
weapons. Earlier this year,
Japan scrapped a decadesold ban on the military use of
space, hoping to remove any
legal obstacles to building
more advanced spy satellites.
South Korea, a late starter in
the space race, has launched
three commercial satellites
since 1995 and launched its
first military communications satellite in 2006.

President congratulates Team Chandrayaan
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22 (PTI): President Pratibha Patil on Wednesday congratulated ISRO scientists on the successful launch of India's maiden moon mission Chandrayaan-1, calling it a "landmark day" for the country. In a message from Guwahati, Patil
said it was a "landmark day" which would inspire the Indian space scientists for sending
manned missions in the future. Patil, who is on a tour of the Northeast, said India should
aim at sending Indian astronauts to space in an Indian space capsule.

graphical characteristics of
the moon's surface. It is expected to reach lunar orbit in
15 days. The mission, which

NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22 (PTI): The Supreme Court
today declined to hand over to CBI the investigation into the
alleged rape of a nun during the on-going communal violence
in Orissa. "At this stage we do not think that handing over the
investigation into the case from the state police to the CBI is
in the interest of the victim as well as in the interest of justice.
We think that the victim will cooperate with the state police,"
a Bench headed by Chief Justice K G Balakrishnan said.
The Bench noted that the victim has left the area and
was refusing to participate in the Test Identification Parade
(TIP), though nine persons have been arrested in connection with the alleged rape. On the issue of compensation
for damage caused to churches during the communal riots,
the Bench asked the Orissa Government to assess the damage and assist in re-building them. The apex Court said
that proceedings in cases arising out of the violence will
have to be conducted by setting up fast track courts.
Further, the Bench said that the central para-military
forces provided to the state government for maintaining
law and order in riot-hit area will remain there till December-end in view of the upcoming festival of Christmas. The Archbishop of Cuttack had in a petition sought
Rs three crore compensation for demolition of Churches
in the anti-Christian riots, while seeking a CBI inquiry
into attacks on Christians. He alleged that Orissa government was not taking steps to arrest the culprits who allegedly raped and paraded the nun naked on August 25.

RS adjourns after uproar over on Indo-US N deal
attack on Christians in Orissa WASHINGTON, OCTOBER 22 (AGEN-

NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22
(PTI): Opposition BJP and ruling
Congress members today clashed in
the Rajya Sabha over the issue of attack on Christians in Orissa, leading
to abrupt adjournment of the House.
Trouble broke out when Congress
member Shantaram Laxman Naik
rose to read his Zero Hour notice on the
issue, provoking BJP members who
strongly protested against raising state
matters. Orissa is ruled by BJD-BJP coalition. Rudra Narayan Pany (BJP) led
the opposition attack which was immediately countered by Congress members, plunging the House into turmoil.
Deputy Chairman K Rahman
Khan pleaded with the agitated opposition members to restore peace as
the notice had been admitted by the
Chairman and he could not do anything about it. As Pany rushed towards

the podium, Khan admonished him.
"I condemn this. I am warning you," he
said as the BJP member had a heated
argument with the Chair.
Senior BJP member S S Ahluwalia
then asked Pany to take his seat and he
himself entered into a verbal duel with
Khan. BJD member B J Panda was
also seen standing in protest. Amidst
noisy scenes, Khan asked Naik to read
the notice, further infuriating the opposition members who rushed to the
well. Some members from the Congress too rushed towards the well to
counter the BJP attack. At one point of
time, an agitated Pany was seen rushing towards the Congress bench and
was persuaded by his senior party colleagues to go back to his place. As the
din continued, Khan adjourned the
House 15 minutes before the scheduled lunch recess.

Japan non-committal on civil nuclear co-operation with India

TOKYO, OCTOBER 22 (AGENCIES):
Notwithstanding the NSG waiver for
New Delhi, Japan on Wednesday appeared non-committal on civil nuclear
co-operation with India even as the two
countries agreed that atomic power could
play an important role as a sustainable
and non-polluting source of energy in
meeting the growing global demands.
The two sides "shared the view that nuclear energy can play an important role as a
safe, sustainable and non-polluting source
of energy in meeting the rising global energy demands," said a joint statement issued at the end of the summit talks between
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his
Japanese counterpart Taro Aso here.
The statement did not say whether Japan, which has serious reservations on nuclear issues for historic reasons, would co-

operate with India in the civilian nuclear
sector. Earlier, India had said it understood
the sensitivities of Japan on the nuclear issue. New Delhi, pleased with Tokyo's backing for India's case at the NSG and IAEA,
said it would be ready when Tokyo thought
it could join hands with it.
Singh and Aso shared the view that
international nuclear disarmament and
non-proliferation efforts should be reinforced. They also stressed the importance
of strengthening their efforts towards the
shared goal of achieving a "world free of
nuclear weapons."
The two Prime Ministers condemned
terrorism in all its forms and manifestations, saying that it constitutes a "serious
threat" to international peace and security. They welcomed efforts taken by both
countries to combat the menace.

CIES): United States President George W Bush
has formally certified to the Congress that the
123 agreement with India is consistent with
the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty. Bush also
made a commitment that his administration will
work with NSG members to restrict enrichment/
reprocessing technologies.
There are two phases of certification and the
first phase contains the two commitments to be
done by the President before exchange of the diplomatic note and entry into force of the Indo-US nuclear agreement. In a Presidential determination
of October 20, Bush has sent a memorandum to his
Secretary of State on the certifications pursuant to
the United States-India Nuclear Cooperation Approval and Non Proliferation Enhancement Act.
"Pursuant to section 102(c) and section
204(a) of the United States-India Nuclear Cooperation Approval and Nonproliferation Enhancement Act, I hereby certify the entry into
force and implementation of the United StatesIndia Agreement for Cooperation on Peaceful
Uses of Nuclear Energy pursuant to its terms
is consistent with the obligation of the United
States under the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation
of Nuclear Weapons not in any way to assist, encourage, or induce India to manufacture or otherwise acquire nuclear weapons or other nuclear
explosive devices," Bush has said.
"It is the policy of the US to work with members
of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, individually and
collectively, to agree to further restrict the transfers
of equipment and technology related to the enrichment of uranium and reprocessing of spent nuclear
fuel," he added. "You are authorised and directed to
publish this determination in the Federal Register," the Presidential Memorandum said.
The President notified his certifications in
separate letters to the Speaker of the House, the
President of the Senate, the Chairman of the House
Foreign Affairs Committee and the Senate Foreign
Relations Committee. "I am pleased to transmit
to the Congress the certifications required under
section 102(c) and section 204(a) of the 'United
States-India Nuclear Cooperation Approval and
Non-proliferation Enhancement Act,' (Public Law
110-369), and a Memorandum of Justification regarding those certifications," Bush said.

Three dead, 179 arrested in MNS violence at Thane

MUMBAI, OCTOBER 22
(AGENCIES): Three persons were killed and over 170
arrested in neighbouring
Thane after violence erupted
there following the arrest of
MNS leader Raj Thackeray,
police said. Three deaths
were reported in the Pisoli
village area in Kalyan last
night following a clash between two groups, Thane
Police Commissioner Anil
Dhere said. "We have made
179 arrests in the Thane
commissionerate area since
last night in connection with
violence," Dhere said.
The three dead have been
identified as Omprakash
Dubey, Mayur Dubey and
Gurunath Bhoir, the brother
of a local MNS leader. Asked
if the clash between the two
groups took place in the
wake of MNS activists targeting north Indian community members living there,
the Commissioner said the
matter was being investigated. "We are still investigating
whether the clash between
the two groups was a result of
a clash between MNS activists and north Indians or due
to past enmity," Dhere said.
The town, with a population of about 5,000 persons,
has witnessed high security
since the incident but cur-

few has not been imposed, he
said. The town has witnessed
clashes between groups of resident members of the north
Indian community and MNS
activists in the past.
Violence erupted in Kalyan and surrounding areas
last night after arrested MNS
leader Raj Thackeray was
taken to the Manpada police
station in Dombivali in connection with the assault on
candidates who appeared for
railway recruitment exams
on October 19.

Raj Thackeray’s wife holds sit-in protest

MUMBAI, OCTOBER 22 (AGENCIES): Indefinite curfew was clamped
on Wednesday in most parts of Kalyan
town where Maharashtra Navnirman
Sena chief Raj Thackeray is being held
in a police lock-up after being arrested for inciting violence against North
Indians. Thackeray's wife was staging
a sit-in to demand a meeting with him
with party workers in attendance, an official said.
The police said Thackeray's wife
Sharmila could meet Raj, but she deMaharashtra to bring ordi- manded that party office-bearers must

nance against destruction
of public property

The Maharashtra Government seems to be learning its lessons. Their new zero-tolerance approach with
Raj Thackeray is an attempt
to demonstrate that they are
not going to go soft on him as
many believed they did last
time. So the state is likely
to bring in an ordinance on
Wednesday against destruction of public property.
The ordinance will seek to
increase the fine and punishment of upto five years. It will
also have provisions to recover money directly from those
who damage public property
be it a political party.

also be allowed to meet him. The police
refused to allow that. The police baton
charged Raj supporters who defied the
curfew and came out in large groups on
the roads leading to Kalyan court. He is
scheduled to appear in court at 2 pm on
Wednesday.
The authorities have also deployed
Rapid Action Force (RAF) and State
Reserve Police (SRP) to help the local
administration maintain law and order. The town in neighbouring Thane
district, about 70 km from Mumbai,
was rocked by group clashes leading to

police baton charge, widespread arson,
damage to private and public property, damage to the railway station and
general mayhem as the MNS chief was
brought there on Tuesday evening.
Raj was taken there to face police
charges in a case of attacks on north Indian candidates who had come to Kalyan to
appear for railway recruitment examinations last on Sunday. Since the night magistrate was not available, Raj spent his
first night in the fortress-like precincts of
Manpada police station in the sister city
of Dombivli, angering his supporters.

Angry students attack Rly property in Bihar
PATNA, OCTOBER 22
(AGENCIES): Angry students in various parts of Bihar
on Wednesday damaged railway property and disrupted
train traffic, as protests continued against assaults on
North Indians by Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS)
activists in Mumbai.
The police said the protesters targeted Patna, Jehanabad, Barh, Khusrupur,
Sasaram and Purnia railway
stations in the morning. The
protesting students also set
afire two AC bogies of an ex-

press train at Barh railway
station. They ransacked Jehanabad, Barh, Purnia and
Sasaram railway stations.
"The protesters damaged
railway properties and totally disrupted train movement," a senior Railway official said here.
According to the Railway Police, at least 10 students were detained in the
morning and extra security was deployed to control
the situation. The students
were protesting the attacks
by MNS activists on North

Indian candidates, particularly from Bihar, who were
appearing at a railway recruitment examination Sunday. Youths who returned to
Bihar Tuesday after being assaulted in Mumbai alleged
that a candidate was killed
by Raj Thackeray-led MNS
supporters in Mumbai.
Pawan Kumar, 25, a resident of Bara-Khurd village in
Nalanda district, about 100
km from here, was one of the
hundreds of students from
Bihar appearing for the exam
in Maharashtra. The railway

police at the Patna Railway
station have filed a First Information Report against Raj
Thackeray and his supporters for the assault on the students from Bihar. "A case was
registered on the basis of the
statement of the students who
returned here Tuesday after
being assaulted by MNS activists," DN Gupta, Patna Superintendent of Railway Police, said. Gupta said that the
case against Thackeray and
his supporters were lodged
under Sections 147, 148, 149,
323, 324 and 307 of the IPC.

INTERNATIONAL

The Morung Express

Thursday
23 October 2008

Dimapur

9

McCain raises specter of nuclear war

MOON TOWNSHIP, OCTOBER 22 (AFP): John
McCain raised the specter of
nuclear war as he struggled
to overcome rival Barack
Obama's widening lead in
the polls with just 14 days left
in the epic race to the White
House. Warning voters that
the United States faces "many
challenges here at home, and
many enemies abroad in this
dangerous world," McCain returned to the attack line that
Obama has poor judgment
and is not ready to lead the
country. The next president
"won't have time to get used
to the office," the Republican
said at a rally on Tuesday.
"I sat in the cockpit on the
flight deck of the USS Enterprise off of Cuba. I had a target," McCain said, referring to
the 1962 Cuban Missile crisis.
"I know how close we came to
a nuclear war and I will not be
a president that needs to be
tested. I have been tested. Senator Obama has not." But the
Arizona senator's campaign
was smarting after a poll by
the Pew Research Center
showed Obama ahead by 14
points, and an investigation of
Republican funds indicating
more than 150,000 dollars had
been spent on clothes for his
running mate Sarah Palin.

With the presidential vote
looming on November 4, voters
expressed a "widespread loss of
confidence in McCain," with
41 percent of Pew respondents
saying McCain "showed poor
judgment." Only 29 percent
said that of Obama. McCain
also trails 32 to 53 on the critical question of who would best
improve economic conditions.
McCain acknowledged that he
was "a few points down" in the
polls but vowed to continue to
fight for hard-working Americans as he kept up his attack
on Obama's economic policies,
casting the Illinois senator as
a job-killing socialist bent on
"redistributing wealth."
Experts have suggested
that McCain could stage a
comeback by courting white,
working class voters who have
traditionally taken a more conservative stance. In Florida,
Obama shot back, accusing
McCain of turning a blind eye
to the financial crisis and offering up out-dated ideas for
fixing the country's troubled
economy. "The financial crisis
that states, businesses and families are facing didn't just spring
up full-blown overnight," the
Democratic candidate said.
Pushing back at the "socialist" Republican presidential candidate Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz., standing with his wife Cindy, encourages his supportcharge, Obama pointed to his ers to stand up and ﬁght for America at the close of his address during a campaign rally in Bensalem, Pa., Tuesday,
high power supporters like bil- October 21. (AP Photo)

lionaire financier Warren Buffett and former Republican
secretary of state Colin Powell.
"Apparently Senator McCain's decided that if he can't
beat our ideas, he's just going
to make up some ideas and
run against those," Obama
said. "John McCain is still out
there, just saying this stuff, just
making it up." As Florida voters flocked to early voting sites
for a second day on Tuesday,
polls suggested Obama now
has a slight lead over McCain
in the state which was pivotal
in President George W. Bush's
win over Al Gore in the 2000
election. McCain is scheduled
to campaign in Florida on
Thursday, the same day that
Obama heads to Hawaii to be
with his ailing grandmother,
giving McCain an opportunity to dominate media coverage
as he campaigns aggressively
in battleground states.
"It's Florida, Florida, Florida for sure," said state Governor Charlie Crist, recalling that
McCain lived there when he
was in the Navy. "He gets it. He
understands our state. He cares
deeply about Florida." Obama
planned to meet his top national security advisors Wednesday
on the sidelines of a campaign
stop in Richmond, Virginia and
will make a statement on the

US security role in the world,
his campaign said. McCain will
meet up with Palin in Ohio on
Wednesday following a morning rally in New Hampshire.
Palin, who was instrumental
in rallying the Republican party's conservative base after she
was named to the ticket in late
August, came under fire from
the Obama campaign for saying
last week that the patriotic values of "real America" could only
be found in conservative small
towns. Critics said it suggested
she believed other areas were
not "real America". Backpedaling, Palin said on Tuesday she
was sorry for her comments in
an interview with CNN. "I don't
want that misunderstood," Palin said. "If that's the way it came
across, I apologize."
Also, a campaign spokeswoman sought to downplay a
report by the website Politico
that said the Republican National Committee had spent
more than 150,000 dollars on
clothes for Palin and her family. "With all of the important
issues facing the country right
now, it's remarkable that we're
spending time talking about
pantsuits and blouses," said
spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt.
"It was always the intent that
the clothing go to a charitable
purpose after the campaign."

Republicans spent $150,000 on outﬁts for Palin

Republican vice presidential candidate Alaska Gov.
Sarah Palin carries her son, Trig, as her husband, Todd,
places the bay seat in a vehicle as they arrive at Walker
Field for a speech in Grand Junction, Colo., Monday, October 20. (AP Photo)

WASHINGTON, OCTOBER 22 (AFP): Financial
records show that the Republican National Committee ap-

pears to have spent more than
150,000 dollars on clothes for
vice presidential pick Sarah
Palin, Politico reported. The

Republicans' main campaign
and fundraising organ spent
tens of thousands at high-end
stores, such as Saks Fifth Avenue in St. Louis and New
York (49,425 dollars) and Neiman Marcus in Minneapolis
(75,062 dollars), the Politico
website said.
The RNC also spent
4,716 dollars on hair and
makeup through September,
Politico said. Those kinds of
expenditures did not appear
in the RNC's financial disclosure records before the
Alaska governor was named
to John McCain's ticket in
August, it added. Politico
said it reviewed the RNC's
September monthly financial disclosure report and
found a new category, "campaign accessories," included
in the report of "itemized coordinated expenditures."
The McCain-Palin campaign issued a statement
shortly after the report appeared online. "With all of
the important issues facing
the country right now, it's remarkable that we're spending

time talking about pantsuits
and blouses," said spokeswoman Tracey Schmitt. "It
was always the intent that the
clothing go to a charitable
purpose after the campaign."
Asked for comment by Politico, another spokeswoman
Maria Comella "declined to
answer specific questions
about the expenditures, including whether it was necessary to spend that much,"
the report said.
"The campaign does not
comment on strategic decisions regarding how financial resources available to
the campaign are spent," Comella was quoted as saying.
Among the department store
sprees were expense reports
for two high-end baby stores,
"suggesting 295 dollars was
spent to accommodate the
littlest Palin to join the campaign trail," Politico said.
Palin gave birth to a son, her
fifth child, earlier this year.
Another 4,902 dollars were
"spent at Atelier, a high-class A member of a guard of honor contingent checks the alignment of his colleagues before a welcome ceremony for
shopping destination for Vietnam's Prime Minister Nguyen Tan Dung outside the Great Hall of the People in Beijing, China, Wednesday, Ocmen," the report noted.
tober 22. (AP Photo)

Thaksin case emboldens “vindicated” protesters Ban says frustrated

BANGKOK, OCTOBER 22
(REUTERS): A jail sentence
imposed on former Thai Prime
Minister Thaksin Shinawatra for graft will add vigour
to the street campaign trying
to topple the present government led by his supporters, a
protest leader said on Wednesday. The People's Alliance for
Democracy (PAD), whose
supporters have occupied the
prime minister's official compound since August, said the
verdict vindicated their longrunning campaign against
Thaksin and what they call
his puppet regime.
"The verdict meant our
campaign against Thaksin
was right all along, which will
bring more people to join our
campaign now to bring him
back home to serve his sentence," PAD leader Suriyasai
Katasila told Reuters. The Supreme Court ruled on Tuesday
that Thaksin, who is living in
exile in Britain, had violated a
conflict-of-interest law while
in office and sentenced him to
two years in prison. Minutes
after the verdict, Thaksin told
Reuters by telephone he had
expected the trial to end that
way because the whole case
was politically motivated.
A series of graft charges
were initiated by a panel set
up after the military coup that
ousted him in 2006. An elected
government returned to power in early 2008. It is already
on its second prime minister,
Thaksin's brother-in-law Somchai Wongsawat. Somchai was
booed and jeered by around
500 state employees during
a visit to the telecommunications ministry on Wednesday.
"Somchai, murderer! Somchai,
get out!" the demonstrators
shouted, blaming him for violent clashes between anti-government protesters and police
outside parliament on October
7, when two people were killed
and hundreds injured.
Somchai, who took over
from Samak Sundaravej last

month after Samak, too, was
found guilty of a conflict of interest, has come under pressure
from the PAD and military
chiefs to accept responsibility
and quit. He had to be escorted
by 10 police officers to get past
the crowd at the ministry and
into a car as shoes and bottles
were thrown at him, a Reuters reporter at the scene said.
Suriyasai said the PAD, a led
by band of royalists, business
people and academics, would
continue their occupation of
Government House to press
Somchai to work for Thaksin's
extradition.
"What we have to do now is
to adjust our campaign tactics
to avoid violence, otherwise it
will give Thaksin an excuse for
political asylum in Britain," Suriyasai said. Thaksin denies he
is seeking asylum. The verdict
has done nothing to narrow the
political divide in Thailand,
where Thaksin remains popular among rural voters and the
poor, and there is no consensus
on what happens next. "The
army chief was calling on Somchai to quit on TV, but what they
have struck behind the scenes
might have been a house dissolution and a snap election," political commentator Sukhum
Nualskul said. "I think that is
the best option for all sides."
Analysts said Somchai's
People Power Party was likely
to win again and lead a new
coalition government. That
course of events might give
the government breathing
space to pursue the drafting
of a new constitution to replace the one brought in by
the military government, but
preventing that was one of
the reasons the PAD took to
the streets in May. The political crisis dates back to 2005,
when the PAD launched
street protests against Thaksin, alleging corruption and
abuse of power. It has meandered through a coup to elections and back to protests and
shows no sign of resolution.

by Myanmar inaction

Anti Government Protesters cerebrate inside Government house in Bangkok on Tuesday October 21. A Thai court found former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra guilty of
corruption Tuesday and sentenced him to two years in prison, further deepening the
country's paralyzing political crisis. (AP Photo)

Thailand prepares extradition of Thaksin

BANGKOK, OCTOBER 22 (AFP): Thai
prosecutors on Wednesday began gathering
evidence to submit to Britain asking for the
extradition of ousted premier Thaksin Shinawatra, after he was sentenced in absentia
to two years in jail. The Supreme Court on
Tuesday found Thaksin guilty of violating
corruption laws when he helped his wife buy
a cut-price lot of government land.
"The extradition process began today
(Wednesday)," said Sirisak Tiyapan, international affairs director at the attorney general's office. "The special litigation department
will copy the verdict and translate it into
English, before we prepare case details. "All
documents must be translated into English
before we can prepare the petition and that
will take considerable time ... in our petition,
we have to prove Thaksin committed a crime
that is common between the two countries."
Once all the paperwork is complete, the
attorney general will forward a petition to
the foreign ministry, which could lodge it

with the Thai embassy in London or file it
through the British embassy in Bangkok,
said Sirisak. A British Home Office spokesman said earlier this month that Thaksin
and his wife Pojaman had applied for political asylum, although people close to Thaksin were quoted in local media Wednesday
as saying that report was not true. Thaksin
and Pojaman fled to Britain in August this
year saying they would not get a fair trial on
corruption charges back home.
Thaksin was overthrown in a military coup
in September 2006, and the junta set up a corruption investigation unit to look into alleged
abuses of power. So far, the Supreme Court
has agreed to hear five cases against Thaksin.
The land deal verdict on Tuesday was the first
judgement against Thaksin since the putsch.
An attempt to extradite Thaksin during his
first period in exile after the coup got bogged
down in complexities, as the charges he faced
in Thailand were not covered by the extradition treaty with Britain.

UNITED NATIONS, OCTOBER 22 (REUTERS):
U.N. Secretary General Ban
Ki-moon voiced frustration
that Myanmar's military government had failed to take up
proposals by the world body
to bring democracy to the
southeast Asian nation. Ban
has been asked by the U.N.
Security Council to do his
utmost to pursue reforms in
Myanmar, which drew international condemnation last
year for a bloody crackdown
on pro-democracy protesters
led by monks.
Ban's special envoy, Ibrahim Gambari, last visited the
former Burma in August, but
failed to wring concessions
from the junta or to meet
opposition leader Aung San
Suu Kyi, who has been under
house arrest for most of the
past five years. In a report,
Ban said "it remains a source
of frustration that meaningful steps have yet to be taken
by the Myanmar authorities
in response to the concerns
and expectations of the United Nations and the international community."
Myanmar says it is pursuing its own seven-step
"roadmap" to democracy. It
announced overwhelming
public support in a May referendum on an army-drafted
constitution as part of a process meant to culminate in
multiparty elections in 2010
and end a nearly 20-year political stalemate. Western
countries have condemned
the referendum as a sham.
"It is unfortunate that
specific suggestions of the
United Nations to improve
the credibility and inclusiveness of the political process
have thus far not been taken up by the government,"
Ban said in his report for

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon speaks
at the Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge,
Mass., Tuesday, October 21. (AP Photo)

the General Assembly. The
main U.N. demands, backed
by the Security Council and
advanced by Gambari, have
been for the junta to release
political prisoners, including
Aung San Suu Kyi, and start
a serious dialogue with the
opposition.
Ban said that "expectations are high that the government of Myanmar will
start taking substantive action" on those proposals. It
was up to the junta "to genuinely demonstrate its stated
commitment to cooperating
with the United Nations."
Ban also called, however, on
all countries that were interested in a solution in Myanmar to "work constructively
together" in support of U.N.
efforts. Saying that only negotiated political solutions

would work, he urged Myanmar's government and opposition to find ways to talk to
each other.
Earlier this month, Ban
said he would drop plans to
make a long talked-about visit to Myanmar unless he was
confident it would achieve
tangible results in promoting democracy. He made a
first visit there after Cyclone
Nargis in May but has said he
would like to return to discuss
political issues. The United
Nations has been caught between a government reluctant
to budge from its path and
Western nations impatient
for change. U.N. officials say
Gambari believes Myanmar's
leaders are only likely to favor a gradual transition from
military rule on the model of
Indonesia or Thailand.

10

Dimapur

SPORTS

Thursday
23 October 2008

Arsenal seal crushing
win at Fenerbahce

Arsenal's Samir Nasri is fouled by Fenerbahce's Gokhan Gonul during their Group G Champions League soccer match at Sukru Saracoglu stadium in
Istanbul, Turkey, Tuesday, October 21. (AP Photo)

ISTANBUL, OCTOBER
22 (REUTERS): Arsenal
stormed to a 5-2 victory over
Fenerbahce in a pulsating
Champions League match
on Tuesday which put the
London side in a strong po-

sition at the top of Group G.
Emmanuel Adebayor fired
the Gunners ahead after 10
minutes, slotting the ball
calmly past Fenerbahce
goalkeeper Volkan Demirel
after Cesc Fabregas picked

him out with a pass which
cut through the home defence.
Fabregas repeated the
feat a minute later, this time
finding Theo Walcott, who
skipped over Demirel to

score from a narrow angle.
Fenerbahce grabbed a goal
back after 19 minutes when
a shot from Semih Senturk
deflected off defender Mikael Silvestre into his own
goal. Within three minutes,

Abou Diaby had restored
the visitors' two-goal cushion going into half time.
The home side had
gained the upper hand in
the latter stages of the first
half when striker Daniel

Guiza had three goalscoring
chances. He put the ball into
the net in the 31st minute but
was ruled offside, shot wide
in the 40th minute, and two
minutes later Arsenal keeper
Manuel Almunia frustrated
him again. The second half
brought more woe for Fenerbahce, with a strong shot
from Alex Song extending
Arsenal's lead to 4-1 within
four minutes of the restart.
The Turkish team's frustration was heightened in the
67th minute when three goalscoring efforts were blocked
first by Almunia and then
by two Arsenal defenders in
succession. Guiza pulled a
goal back in the 78th minute
when he lobbed a shot over
Almunia, but young substitute Aaron Ramsey sealed
Fenerbahce's misery, scoring
Arsenal's fifth in stoppage
time with a well struck shot
from the edge of the area. Arsenal coach Arsene Wenger
paid tribute to his players
after the game.
"We came her and tried
to dictate the game in a very
heated atmosphere. I'm very
proud of that," he told a news
conference. "Our pace movement and technique made
all the difference." The result
kept Arsenal top of the group
on seven points, followed by
Dynamo Kiev on five points
after their 1-0 victory over
Porto. Fenerbahce stay bottom on one point. The result piled fresh pressure on
Fenerbahce's Spanish coach
Luis Aragones, with his team
languishing in 10th in the
domestic league despite a
weekend victory. "We didn't
play as a team. We were too
much on the attack and we
didn't concentrate enough
on defending," he said.

Murray continues good form Resurgent Juventus defeat Real

Britain's Andy Murray returns the ball to Serbia's Viktor Troicki during their tennis match at the St. Petersburg Open ATP
tennis tournament in St. Petersburg, Russia, Wednesday, Octkober 22. (AP Photo)

ST. PETERSBURG, OCTOBER 22 (AP): Defending champion Andy Murray
beat Viktor Troicki 6-3, 6-3
Wednesday to advance to the
second round of the St. Petersburg Open, while Nikolay Davydenko pulled out
with a wrist injury.
The 6th-ranked Russian sustained the injury
on Tuesday and said he was
unlikely to be able to play in
Paris next week. "Even if the
inflammation and pain pass,
I will have no time for preparation," Davydenko said.

Davydenko said that if
there was no pain by the end
of the next week he would
have two weeks to prepare
for the season-ending Masters event in Shanghai.
Murray, fresh from winning the Madrid Masters on
Sunday for his fourth title
this season, broke Troicki in
the fifth and eighth games
of the first set. The fourthranked Briton had an early
break in the second set and
saved the only break point
he faced in the eighth game.
"He (Troicki) made a

lot of mistakes on his forehand today," Murray said.
"I haven't seen him play so
much, so I didn't really have
too may tactics, but for my
game I tried to serve well
and change the speed of the
ball a lot."
It was the eighth consecutive win for the U.S. Open
finalist, including two victories in Britain's Davis Cup
World Group playoffs against
Austria in September.
Murray, who also won
titles in Doha, Marseille and
Cincinnati, next plays Ernests Gulbis of Latvia.
Earlier, Fernando Verdasco beat wild card Karlis
Lejnieks 6-1, 6-3 to reach the
quarterfinals.
The third-seeded Verdasco had little trouble against
the 20-year-old Latvian, the
lowest-ranked player in the
field at No. 664 and playing
in his first ATP event. The
15th-ranked Spaniard, a runner-up to Murray here last
year, had two breaks in each
set to closeout the match in
65 minutes. In the quarters,
Verdasco will face German
veteran Rainer Schuettler,
who defeated Dominik
Hrbaty of Slovakia 6-3, 6-3.
In other first-round action, Kazakhstan qualifier
Andrey Golubev served 19
aces to beat Olivier Rochus
of Belgium, 6-1, 6-4.

Alessandro Del Piero celebrates after scored during the
Champions League Group H soccer match between Juventus and Real Madrid at the Olympic Stadium in Turin, Tuesday, October 21. (AP Photo)

TURIN, OCTOBER 21
(REUTERS): Juventus
shrugged off a wobble in
form to beat Real Madrid
2-1 in Champions League
Group H on Tuesday with
goals from strikers Alessandro del Piero and Amauri. Evergreen Del Piero, 33,
latched on to Amauri’s pass
and curled the ball into the
top corner from 20 metres
after five minutes. Injuryhit Juve, who had not won in
five coming into the game,
punished a lethargic Real
again after 49 minutes when
Amauri’s header from Pavel
Nedved’s cross deflected in
off Gabriel Heinze.
Ruud van Nistelrooy
then nodded in unmarked
for the visitors but Juve hung
on despite dropping back

very deep at times. The Serie
A club take over at the top of
the group with seven points
from three games with the
Spanish champions on six.
BATE Borisov drew 1-1 at
Zenit St Petersburg in the
other group match. “Tonight
we have been a bit lucky...but
I must give credit to the players because they were compact and stopped Real playing like they are used to,”
Juve coach Claudio Ranieri
told a news conference.
“We knew we were not doing so well this year but some
of the criticism has been excessive. I knew the club was
behind me,” added Ranieri,
whose side are languishing
in 12th place in Serie A. Real
were on a high after beating
Atletico Madrid 2-1 in last

weekend’s city derby but it
was stuttering Juventus who
came flying out of the traps.
“In Spain we are used to starting games well but tonight it
was complicated. Juventus
were quick off the mark and
it was tough for us,” Real
coach Bernd Schuster said.
“Everyone said Juve were not
in great form but they showed
tonight they are an aggressive side. We must find new
resolve and beat Juve at home
and move forward.”
All Real could really muster until their goal was a few
long-range efforts, with Wesley Sneijder striking the post.
Real’s former Juve defender
Fabio Cannavaro was booed
all night by the home crowd
for quitting the Turin club
following their demotion for
match-fixing two years ago.
A minute’s applause was held
before kickoff after at least two
Switzerland-based Juve supporters were killed and several
injured when a coach crashed
on its way to the game.
Home fans lightened the
mood by waving thousands
of black and white flags and
really getting behind the
twice European champions,
who are back in the Champions League for the first time
since the 2006 scandal. “It
was a game we have dreamed
about for a long time,” added
Ranieri.

‘Tendulkar most deserving batsmen to break my record’

MELBOURNE, OCTOBER 22 (PTI): Legendary
West Indian batsman Brian
Lara paid tributes to Sachin
Tendulkar, saying that the
Indian batting maestro was
the most deserving batsman
to break his world record
and become the highest rungetter in Tests. "I was quite
happy for him. There is no
better individual or batsman in the world that could
can go past you than Sachin
Tendulkar," Lara said.
"He has been a great for
so many years and is someone who is deserving of such
a record. So I just want to
wish him the best," he told
local media during his visit
to Australian Institute of
Sports in Canberra. Lara
said he was never in doubt
that his 11,953-run mark
would be bettered following his retirement in 2006.
"I thought it was definitely
going to be broken. I think
Indian batsman Sachin Tendulkar returns after India declared their innings on the fourth day of the second cricket test match my impromptu retirement
made it more available for
between India and Australia, in Mohali, India, Monday, October 20. (AP Photo)

other batsmen.
"I mentioned it a couple
of years ago when I went
past Allan Border's record
that it was a record that I
would always cherish. To
be considered in the same
group as Allan Border, Sunil Gavaskar and now Sachin Tendulkar, it is a great
feeling, an honourable feeling, and something I am
very proud of," he said. Lara,
however, believes that Australian captain Ricky Ponting will eventually break
Tendulkar's record.
"Ricky Ponting is someone who is in line to hold
such a record as well. I
would think that (Ponting) still has 30 or 40 Tests
matches left under his belt
and he has already gone past
10,000 runs." Ponting, who
will turn 34 in December,
has scored 10,246 runs in his
121-Test career to leave him
1791 runs behind Tendulkar
(12037), who has played 31
more matches.

The Morung Express

Route of 2009 Tour de France

This map provided Wednesday October 22, by Amaury Sport
Organisation (ASO) shows the route of the 2009 Tour de France.
The 2009 Tour de France will have a tough mountain stage on
its penultimate day in a tradition-busting innovation that could
complicate Lance Armstrong's possible return. (AP Photo)

Aussies land in Delhi for 3rd Test
NEW DELHI, OCTOBER 22 (PTI): The Australian
cricket team, which suffered a humiliating 320-run defeat
against India in Mohali, arrived here on Wednesday for
the third Test beginning later in the month. Soon after
landing here, Ricky Ponting's men checked into a hotel here
and were accorded a traditional welcome by the staff. The
world champions, who are trailing 0-1 in the four-match
series, will take a day off on Thursday before training from
Friday at the Feroze Shah Kotla where the third Test will be
played from October 29. The victorious Indians have also
got a break and will re-assemble in the capital on October
26 to prepare for the potentially series deciding match. The
fourth and final match of the series will be played in Nagpur
from November 6 to 10.

Ahlmann disqualiﬁed from
Olympics in drug case

LAUSANNE, OCTOBER 22 (AP): German rider Christian Ahlmann has been officially disqualified from the Beijing Olympics equestrian events for a positive drug test on
his horse. The 33-year-old Ahlmann was also suspended
Wednesday from competing in the sport for four months by
the International Equestrian Federation (FEI). The governing body said in a statement that the German's evidence at a
hearing indicated "severe negligence" in applying a banned
medication to his horse, Coster. It tested positive for capsaicin, a banned pain relief medication derived from chili peppers. Ahlmann's ban runs through Dec. 18 after taking effect
on the day he was provisionally suspended from the Games.
He came through qualifying in the individual jumping class
but was prevented from taking part in the final, which was
held in Hong Kong. Germany will be downgraded from its
fifth-place finish in the team jumping class after Ahlmann's
scores are wiped from the record. The governing body ordered
Ahlmann to pay 3,500 Swiss francs (US$3,000, euro2,340) as
a fine and legal costs. The German Olympic committee said
it would bill Ahlmann for transport and accommodation
costs incurred by him and his horse at Beijing.

Kidney retains O'Driscoll
as Ireland captain

DUBLIN, OCTOBER 22 (AP): Ireland coach Declan Kidney opted for consistency on Wednesday when he retained
Brian O'Driscoll as captain for next month's tests against Canada, New Zealand and Argentina. Kidney, who took over from
Eddie O'Sullivan in May, had been rumored to be considering Paul O'Connell as his on-field leader after the British and
Irish Lions lock captained Munster to last season's Heineken
Cup title. But the coach kept faith with his star center - who
has captained Ireland 40 times - despite O'Driscoll sustaining
a slight knee injury in Leinster's weekend win over Wasps.
"I am delighted that Brian has agreed to captain the squad,"
Kidney said. "I have also opted to name a bigger squad than
originally anticipated so that we can continue to familiarize a
largely new-look backroom staff with a wider group of players."
O'Driscoll and O'Connell are part of a 41-man squad that will
be trimmed to 30 following a weeklong training camp ahead
of the three matches. Ireland is seeking strong performances
to help at least maintain its world No. 8 ranking, which earns
a higher seeding and easier progress at the World Cup. The
draw for the 2011 tournament in New Zealand will be made
in December. "We are currently ranked eighth - just ahead of
Scotland – so the fact that it is paramount to at least maintain a
top-eight ranking underlines the additional importance of our
results against Canada, New Zealand and Argentina," Kidney
said. Ireland hosts Canada on Nov. 8 before playing New Zealand and Argentina on the next two weekends.

Radwanska reaches
quarterﬁnals in Linz
LINZ, OCTOBER 22 (AP): Third-seeded Agnieszka Radwanska reached the quarterfinals of the Generali Ladies after beating Kaia Kanepi of Estonia 6-2, 6-4 Wednesday. The
10th-ranked Pole has won three WTA Tour titles this season and is competing to qualify for the season-ending Sony
Ericsson Championships. Radwanska broke Kanepi in the
opening game of both sets and stayed in control throughout. Radwanska, who had a bye in the first round, will next
play either fifth-seeded former champion Nadia Petrova or
Katarina Srebotnik of Slovenia. Flavia Pennetta continued
her recent run of good results by beating Agnes Szavay of
Hungary 6-1, 6-2 in a first-round match. The seventh-seeded
Italian, who reached the final of the Zurich Open last week,
dropped only three points on serve in the opening set and
broke Szavay on six occasions.

C
M
Y
K

Ent/Tabloid

11
‘League 4 Change’ presents Diatribe live on stage PRIME TIME

The Morung Express

P

eople around the
world are yearning
for a ‘Change’ from
the alarming raise
of social ailments. As such
people in Nagaland are experiencing the same ‘social
apathy’ and there is a cry for
a ‘revolution.’ In response to
the alarming apathy especially among many Naga youth
towards social evil Salang
Longchari, Tiameren Amri,
Temsu Akong (Kalong) and
Wabang Tzudir in partnership formed the “League
4 change.” The League 4
Change aspires to organise
events that “will be safe and
provide creative space for the
youth to engage with contemporary social issues and
voice concerns that may be of
importance to them.”
As an opening show, the
‘League 4 Change’ will be
organizing a concert featuring Diatribe on November
5, 2008 at the DDSC stadium from 5:30pm onwards
under the theme ‘Make
a Difference-BE THE
CHANGE-Start a Revolution.’ If things go well the
organisers plans to make it
an annual event. Convenor
of the Organizing Committee Salang, said that the
League focuses mainly on
youth. As a team the League
4 Change through the concert believes in ‘sending a
message and having a good
time for all music lovers.’
And as musicians, Diatribe
avows to take music seriously, do what they love but

(L-R): Kalong, Tiameren, Wabang, Temsu, Salang and Moanungsang at Café Destination, Dimapur after the press conference held for the forth coming Diatribe concert slated on November 5 at DDSC. (Morung Photos)

also do business to create a
big music industry.
Diatribe’s frontman
Kalong while talking about
the scenario and growth of
music industry in Nagaland
said Nagas take things too
lightly. “We get destructed
too easily. If we want to do
things, we have to. There is
no turning back. Just focus
on what we want to do,” Ka-

long said in responds to a
query on music industry in
Nagaland during the press
conference held at Café Destination. Kalong is a member
of Diatribe as well as League
4 Change. Moanungsang,
the first Naga Idol, who happened to be present during
the press conference, added
‘Diatribe is an original band.
Their songs talks about the

present scenario; what you
and I are experiencing as lay
man.’
Uncomplaining of the
fact that concerts have become a daily event especially
in Dimapur, Kalong still
hopes that the band and the
League will be able to send
the message across. “Be it 1
% of what you do, if it help
others, it matters,” he added.

The Diatribe through their
music, audio visual displays
and interactions with the
crowd, wishes to convey the
message that the ‘Youth have
the power to change the future of Nagaland.’ The Band
will be on tour to Delhi and
Patna in the month of December to take part in the
Octave Festival under the
sponsorship of NEZCC.

Rs. 400: Admit 2
Rs 200: Admit 1
Rs 50: general
Tickets for the concert
are available at Movie
Galore, Big Bite,
skins, Unitex, Gravity,
Benetton and Hub in
Kohima; Screwdriver,
K-Lounge, Car Mania,
Encore, Crescendo,
10th Planet and Landmark Technology.
For Rs 400 ticket
buyer, a luck draw will
be held on the day
of the concert and
the winner will get an
acoustic guitar which
is sponsored by Encore Music Shop.

occer ace David Beckham and his wife Victoria’s nine-year marriage
is said to be going through

a rough patch. According to pals,
the couple now spends so much
time trying to keep their celebrity ‘stock’ high that it is piling

more pressure on their alreadystretched relationship. David’s
England football ambitions and
Posh’s American dream means
the couple is spending long periods apart and when they do get together, they seem even more glum
than normal, pals added.
Earlier this month, the 33year-old footballer admitted: “We
have quite a lot of pressure, honestly, as a couple.” Pals fear that
turmoil over his desire to continue his England career could be the
“straw, which breaks the camel’s
back”. According to sources, David is desperate to return to Europe but Posh is keen on staying
in the States to fulfill her dreams.
The reason behind their gloom is
David’s proposed loan deal with
a top Italian or Spanish side this
winter, sources claim.
“David has to move back to
Europe if he wants to continue to
play international football,” the
Daily Star quoted a source, as saying. “Victoria still believes they
can make it big in America, but
she fears a move back to Europe
could kill off their Hollywood fu- Actress Keira Knightley is shown on location during the ﬁlming of "Last
ture for ever,” the source added.
Night," Monday, October 20, in New York. (AP Photo)

The end of an era; ‘Kyunki’
dies an unnatural death

E

ight years after Ekta
Kapoor’s magnum
opus sob-sob family drama ‘Kyunki
Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’
ruled small screen, the show
is finally drawing to a close
this November.
But sad as it may sound
the show has not been allowed
to die a natural death, instead
it has been forced to go off air
as Star group unit has served a
notice to the producers of the
show calling for a termination
of sourcing and telecasting the
show. Just like the show itself,
the end to the maha saga has
been no less than overdramatic as the channel and pro-

duction house are dragging
each other to the court. But
for those of you who are still
unaware as to what happened
here’s the sad story.
Star group unit has stated
that it would terminate sourcing and telecasting popular
television show 'Kyunki Saas
Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi' from
Nov 10. Once one of India's
top-rated shows, 'Kyunki' is
produced by Balaji and the
termination is in breach of
contractual obligation owed
by the Star group to Balaji,
the content maker said in a
statement to the BSE.
Shares in Balaji fell as
much as 13.3 percent to 94.20

rupees after the news and recovered slightly to trade 11.42
percent down at 96.20 rupees
at the close of trade in a firm
Mumbai market. Star was
paying a premium for 'Kyunki' due to its popularity and to
prevent Balaji from providing
other broadcasters with shows
at the same time slot, two analysts said. But as newer shows
stole ratings, the premium
lost relevance, they said.
According to TAM Media Research, 'Balika Vadhu',
a drama on a child bride, and
Star's 'Bidayi' topped the ratings charts, while ‘Kyunki’
didn't feature among the
top five shows in the Hindi

general entertainment genre.
Analysts say that while they
were expecting the show to be
cancelled, the announcement
came 2-3 months earlier than
expected, signalling more
losses for Balaji.
"For 2-3 months, there
will be a decline in revenue
of Balaji," said an analyst
from a Mumbai brokerage
who declined to be named.
"It's definitely a negative for
Balaji." The 8-year-old series
'Kyunki' gained popularity as
an early Hindi soap with the
central character of a daughter-in-law, 'Tulsi', played by
Smriti Irani and has crossed
1,500 episodes, according to
Balaji's website.
In August this year, Star
and Balaji said they will cancel their joint venture agreement to launch regional
language channels and the
Indian broadcaster will sell
its 25.99 percent stake in
Balaji. The founders of Balaji are entitled to purchase the
stake on their own or through
a third party for 190 rupees a
share.
Star, whose flagship general entertainment channel
Star Plus, is the top-rated
channel, faces close competition from new entrant Colors,
a joint venture between Viacom Inc and the Network18
group, TAM data showed.
Its other rivals include New
Delhi Television's NDTV
Imagine and general entertainment channels owned
by Zee Entertainment, Sony
Entertainment and Sahara.

ennifer
Aniston
is reportedly pregnant with John
Mayer's baby. The former
'Friends' actress, who recently rekindled her relationship with the 'Gravity' singer, is believed to
have decided to give their
romance another try after discovering she was
expecting her first child,
according to Australia's
New Weekly magazine.
A source said: "Jennifer is
over the moon. She doesn't
want to be a single mom, so
she is willing to give John
the chance to prove his
parent potential."

The
couple
have been
seen out on several
dates recently, while Jennifer's figure is said to be looking a little more rounded
than usual. It was recently
revealed John penned Jennifer a love song and promised
to cut out his unhealthy vices
to cement their romance. A
source said: "John has written a song about their time
together and played it to
Jennifer who was incredibly
touched. "He has cut right
back on his drinking and
has pledged to quit smoking roll-up cigarettes - two
things that really annoyed
Jennifer."

ManU pushes Celtic to the brink
MANCHESTER, OCTOBER 22 (AFP): Alex Ferguson has hailed Dimitar
Berbatov's double against
Celtic as fresh evidence of the
added dimension brought to
his squad by the Bulgarian
forward's sublime touch and
intelligence. Two close-range
strikes from Berbatov helped
United cruise to a 3-0 win
over the Scottish champions
and brought his United tally
to five goals in seven matches
since his 30-million-pound
move from Tottenham.
But it was the striker's
all-round contribution to
the fluency of United's offensive game that had Ferguson
purring with enthusiasm.
"He showed some fantastic
pieces of football and the
players are beginning to understand the kind of player
he is," Ferguson said. "They
know now that when he takes
the ball with his back to goal
and turns he will produce a
pass that means something.
The weight of some of the
passes he played was just
terrific and he has five goals
already which is a fantastic
contribution."
Although there was a
hint of offside about both
Berbatov's goals, Celtic manager Gordon Strachan had to
admit his side had been comprehensively outclassed by a
United side for whom Wayne
Rooney capped another outstanding display with his
ninth goal in seven matches
for club and country. "I said
to the players at the end of the
game that we cannot be faulted for our guts and determination," Strachan said.
"Where we do fall down
is not being anywhere hear as
good as them at passing the
ball. "Over the last few years
we've played against some
terrific sides but I think that

is the best I've seen." Both
managers agreed that Celtic
had missed the presence of
injured target men Jan Vennegoor of Hesselink and
Georgios Samaras, which
left the diminutive Scott McDonald to operate in lonely
isolation up front.
"They can usually play
a lot of balls up to the big
strikers and they missed
that," Ferguson said. "But
saying that the speed and
the switching of our play
was really good and we kept
getting in behind their fullbacks. "We are in a good bit
of form at the moment and
that was a continuation from
Saturday and the previous
Saturday. There is a terrific
momentum in the team at
the moment."
The knocks that forced
Berbatov and Cristiano Ronaldo off towards the end of
the match ensured it was not
an altogether positive evening but Ferguson's side now
know a victory in Glasgow
in a fortnight's time will be
enough to put them through
to the knockout stages with
two matches to spare. Ronaldo was left grimacing after
being caught on the knee by
flying studs while Berbatov
suffered a hip injury, but
Ferguson played down the
extent of both knocks.
For Celtic, with just one
point from their opening three
matches, the chances of survival now look slim after what was
their tenth consecutive away
defeat in the competition. The
Scots' efforts on goal were restricted to edge-of-the-area
strikes from Aidan McGeady
and Gary Caldwell, both of
which were competently dealt
with by Edwin van der Sar
before United's superiority finally yielded a goal on the half
hour mark.

Manchester United's Dimitar Berbatov, center, scores a goal during their Champions League group E soccer match against Celtic at Old Trafford Stadium, Manchester, England, Tuesday,
October 21. (AP Photo)

Gary Caldwell failed to
clear Nani's corner decisively
and, after John O'Shea had
prodded the ball back into
the six-yard box, Berbatov
produced a deft flick with
his back to goal to beat Boruc

AC Milan conﬁrm
Beckham loan move

In this June 1, 2007 ﬁle photo, England's David Beckham runs
with the ball during their international friendly soccer match
against Brazil at Wembley Stadium in London. (AP Photo/ﬁle)

Milan have signed Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Andrei
Shevchenko and now Beckham, but all four players
seem to be long past their
best. Ronaldo looked overweight and unfit during his
brief and unsuccessful time
in Milan, Shevchenko is a
shadow of the player who left
Milan for Chelsea just over
two years ago and Ronaldinho is not the same player who
was twice crowned world
player of the year, although
he is showing glimpses of his
old self at times.
Beckham is 33 now and
was considered to be easing
himself into retirement by
heading over to the MLS
in the United States a little
over a year ago. But Galliani
insists he is not just a marketing signing. "Milan don't
sign figurines, Milan are
very proud of what we are
doing. "We're the only team
going against the grain (of
falling attendances in Italy):
fans are coming to the stadium to watch Milan. "It's
not by chance that 65,000
people came to watch MilanSampdoria. If 65,000 people
come to the stadium it's because Milan are a great product. "With respect to those
65,000, Beckham will more
likely bring one more fan to
the club than one less."
Beckham cannot officially join Milan until the
transfer window reopens on
January 1. Milan currently sit
sixth in Serie A but are only
one victory behind cross city
rivals, champions and league
leaders Inter. The rossonero
started the season badly, losing their first two scudetto
encounters, but have since
gone seven games unbeaten
in all competitions. Attendances are generally poor in
Italy unless two top teams are
playing but Milan can attract
50,000-60,000 crowds even
for matches against small
teams, although that is still
well below the capacity of the
San Siro, which is more than
80,000.

from what appeared to be a
fractionally offside position.
United had further reason to
be grateful to van der Sar when
O'Shea sliced a Nakamura
freekick towards his own net
just before the interval.

But after Darren Fletcher had squandered a great
chance in first-half stoppage
time, the match was put beyond doubt five minutes after the restart when Boruc
misjudged one of Ronaldo's

dipping freekicks, palming
the ball back into the centre
of his goalmouth instead of
around the post.
Berbatov tapped in
the rebound and Rooney
wrapped things up with

NAGALAND POLICE
today downed rival Anal
Students’ Union 6-0 in the
1st semi finals to enter the
finals of the 9th edition of
NSF Martyrs’ Memorial
Trophy 2008 here under the
aegis of the Angami Students’ Union. The match
witnessed scoreless draw till
the first half.
Nagaland Police opened
their account through Adibu
in the 57th minute. Lipok
increased the score tally in
the 71st minute. Visakholie

and Saku contributed the
3rd and 4th goal for the team
in the 76th and 82nd minute
respectively. Adding delight
to the team, Tiasunup netted
two goals in the 85th and 88th
minute.
Sengul Longam of Anal
Students’ Union was declared as the player of the
match. Earlier, Prof. K.
Kannan, vice chancellor
Nagaland University acted
as match patron. The organizing committee has announced that L. Dikho Mao,
Managing Director, Exotic Juices Limited will be
sponsoring the prize money

amounting to Rs. 35,000 to
the runners-up team of this
year’s edition.
Meanwhile, Angami
Students Union (ASU)
range officials will meet
ASU officials in the exhibition match scheduled for
October 23 at 12:00 Noon.
Sentiyanger, IAS, commissioner and secretary, Horticulture and Information &
Public Relations will grace
the grand finale on October
25 at 1:00 PM.
2ND SEMI FINALS
October 23: Time 2:00 PM
Tribal Spirit vs Kingdom
Stewards

quarter of an hour left, accepting Carlos Tevez's pass
before drilling a low shot
into the bottom corner from
20 yards. "Unplayable" was
Strachan's assessment of
the England forward in his

current form. "We tried everything we could to stop
him. When you see players
like that you just have to
hold your hands up and say
you've just seen a world class
player."

Sports association
Tournament to close today

DIMAPUR, OCTOBER 22 (MExN): The closing ceremony
of the Chakhro Sports association Tournament will be held on
October 23 at 2:00 pm at the Chumukedima Local Ground with
Dr. Kavingulie Khro, Medical Superintendent, District Hospital, Phek as the Chief Guest. The Chumukedima Town Council
has invited all concerned to attend the ceremony.

CORRIGENDUM
In the news item “Half Marathon to be held at Mokokchung”
that was carried on 21/10/08 in the local print media, the prizes of 1st, 2nd & 3rd were inadvertently left out some figure
during typing. The correction may therefore be kindly read
as Rs.25,000/-, Rs.15,000/-, Rs.10,000/- respectively by all concerned. The omission is regretted.
Issued by DPRO, Mokokchung

NLA speaker to
grace State Level
School tournament
KOHIMA, OCTOBER
22 (DIPR): Speaker Nagaland Legislative Assembly, Kiyanilie is to
grace the inaugural function of the State Level
Higher/High Schools
tournament as the chief
guest. The tournament
is to be held from October 28 to 31, 2008 at
Indira Gandhi stadium
Kohima.

ROME, OCTOBER 22 contact had been made with
(AFP): Italian giants AC Mi- Beckham's agent and that a
lan confirmed on Wednes- loan deal is in the offing.
day that former England
"Will he come? Yes, I'm
captain David Beckham will sure of that. He will stay at
join the club on loan during Milan on loan for several
the January transfer window. months, we're speaking with
Milan coach Carlo Ancelotti his agent," he said. "He will
and vice-president Adriano join us for a few months and
Galliani revealed the news then leave. Beckham has
at Milan's Malpensa airport chosen Milan. Our team is
before the team set off to the ultra-competitive and will
Netherlands, where they stay that way, but Beckham
will play Heerenveen in the gives us other options." MiUEFA Cup on Thursday.
lan seem to have taken over
Beckham, who plays from Real Madrid in opting
for LA Galaxy, will join the for a policy of signing 'galacseven-time European cham- ticos' in recent seasons, expions during the off-season cept that whereas the Spanbreak in the MLS. "For me it ish champions signed the
will be a pleasure, Beckham likes of Ronaldo, Zinedine
is a serious athlete, a great Zidane, Luis Figo and Beckprofessional," said Ancelot- ham in their prime, Milan
ti. "If he is available for four are picking up their global
C months for us we will be very stars once past their best.
Australian batsman Brad Haddin is clean-bowled during the ﬁnal day of the second cricket
M pleased." Galliani confirmed
In the last two years
test match between India and Australia, in Mohali, India, Tuesday, October 21. (AP Photo)
Y
Published, Printed and Edited by Aküm Longchari on behalf of Morung for Indigenous Affairs and JustPeace from House No. 4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur at Themba Printers and Telecommunications, Padum Pukhuri Village, Dimapur, Nagaland.
K
Email : editor@morungexpress.com/newsdesk@morungexpress.com, morung@gmail.com. RNI No : NAGENG /2005/15430. House No.4, Duncan Bosti, Dimapur 797112, Nagaland. Phone: Dimapur -(03862) News Desk- 281043, Admin -236871, Fax: (03862) 235194, Kohima - (0370) 2291952
For advertisements and circulation, please contact: (03862) 236871, Fax-235194 or email : morungad@yahoo.com